Heritage
by Kimikashi1161
Summary: go to the deviantart page to use a reference, since i wasn't allowed to make a reference page on the website :D it's called, 'Heritage Reference'. The picture will be the same as the cover image of the story. anyway...none of the ocs from shugo chara are in the story. All OCs, with a twist :D
1. Chapter 1

This is a world where charas are born to everyone with the willpower to obtain their inner strength. This is where it all began.

Heritage

Heels echoed through the near-empty hallway. Silence came back for a split second, but soon ended when the shoes clipped down the circular ebony stairs.

The silky light pink dress slowly skidded along the pale crystalline marble that scaled the ballroom floors. The gold-diamond chandelier twinkled throughout the white satin walls. The floor was completely empty; all of the tables and chairs hadn't been laid out yet. The party tonight was going to be splendid. It was finally time.

Kimi was finally old enough to hold an engagement party – she hadn't been yet, but every rich man and their son will be at this party… finally, love will blossom in her life.

She let her dark purple waist-length hair out of its bun and ruffled her white bangs around. Her top-corset sleeveless puff dress, light pink in all its glory, pranced along the marble.

As she twirled and shuffled, dancing with her eyes closed, she imagined her dream husband moving her along. Messy brown hair, big eyes, big smile, bright personality, but big hands, and a big figure; that way she would feel completely safe every time they embraced.

She started singing to herself… again. Her soft and petite voice echoed throughout the room.

"I remember tears streaming down your face when I said, 'I'll never let you go,'… when all those shadows almost took your light…"

As she imagined, and danced, and sang, she almost lost herself completely. In her own imaginary world…

She started to stumble, but felt something catch her. She looked up to see her older brother, Arlo.

"Oh, h-hi, Arlo Nii-chan…" she mumbled shyly.

"Clumsy as ever, I see," he chuckled. He brushed some of his bright orange hair out of his face.

"Thanks, Nii-san… aren't you excited for me later? I'll finally get a husband! Being 18 really IS great!"

"Yeah, well, being 22 isn't too swell, heheh…" he rubbed his hand on the back of his head.

"Nii-san is so silly! So, will you be there with me, tonight?"

"I'll try to, Kimi. But work calls, and Fiona can't seem to handle the kids on her own…" he saw a look of sorrow take over his sisters face. He kneeled down and patted her on the head. "I'll be there, okay?"

"Yes, Onii-chan!~" She giggled and smiled intently, but softly. "Hey Alro-onii, want to hear me play this new song that I learned on the piano?" she grabbed his hand before he could answer and led him to the music room next door. She sat him down on one of the couches as she herself sat down at the sleek black grand 82-key. Her small fingers brushed against the smooth white and black keys before she played. "It's called, 'Musician'."

She started slow, and as she got into playing, she started to sing.

"Soshite bouyawa nemurini tsuite… ikitsuku, haino nakara honou, hitotsu, futatsuto…"

Their beautiful, ginger-haired mother entered and interrupted the piece. "It's about time to get dressed for the party. Come along, dear.

"Yes, mother…" Kimi stood up and waved to her brother before closing the door behind her. Arlo sighed.

'I hope I can make it,' he thought.

As Kimi followed her mother to the dressing room, she expected to wear something pink again, maybe white, red, black.

Her mother pulled out a puff corset-top sleeveless yellow dress. It was silk as well, but the patterns were different. It came with a fairly large white flower pin for her hair.

"I really like the floral patterns, mother. They suit the dress well."

"They will suit you as well, darling." She called in the dressers, and they tailored to dress smaller, but curvier, to fit her figure. She noticed this dress was a little lower at the top, to show her cleavage more. Corsets made it imminent, since she had large girls.

She slightly squirmed uncomfortably in her revealing dress, and after they fitted her, her mother came in.

She pondered a while before saying, "I don't like the puff. Take is off and replace it with flow silk, maybe a foot long, starting as mid-waist."

"Mother, that's awfully small!" Kimi blushed.

"Look, do you want a husband or not? They're not going to be attracted to you unless you show them how sexy you really are. And, for arguing, take another inch off.

Kimi pouted and let the seamstresses do their work. When the dress was done, it was about five or six inches long starting from the top of her thigh. She felt exposed, but… anything for her mother. And for a husband.

It was about time for her to make an entrance. She shuffled in her yellow heels before having the large double doors opened for her.

She gallantly trotted towards the balcony, leaning against the rail, and staring at the crowd below her. Some of the men had brought their sons along with their wives, but mostly men filled the dance floor. She smirked to herself and took a small breath before speaking.

"Hello everyone. Welcome to my party," she said with a very soft and sincere voice. "I am glad you all could attend." She received applause, to which she stepped back and let her father take back over. She walked over to her black throne and sat down, pulling her dress slightly forward, and crossing her ankles.

As she listened to her father's deep and slow voice give a quite boring speech, she drifted into daydreams again. Thinking about her future dream husband…

She snapped back into attention when the speech stopped. It was time to receive her gifts. Everyone would bring her something, as this would be one of the tests to see who was 'worthy' of her.

The first boy walked up. He was a very small face, and long blonde hair that reached his shoulders. His eyes were dark and mysterious.

'He makes me think of a French man… I hate French men…' she thought. She wore a glass smile on her face.

"Hello missus," he said politely. "I am Frederick Von Hagen the Third." He kneeled down and bowed his head. "It is a pleasure to meet you.

"I pleasure our meeting as well," she replied.

"I have something special for you," he said intently with his very nasal and overconfident tone. He clapped his hands twice, and two maids rushed up the stairs, carrying something in a bag. They opened the bag to reveal a very lacey black dress with a silk choker; it was an ankle dress, very elegant.

"I thought this would suit you best, missus," he chuckled gingerly.

"I enjoy it very much. I thank you warmly." She nodded her head as he headed downstairs. The next man came up.

He had short black hair and glasses. He had a petite figure, but he was quite tall. He bowed and introduced himself, not smiling once.

"I am Juushiro Harimachi. I have brought you something special today, missus." With that, a butler came upstairs, holding a purse. He displayed it in his hands.

"It is a Chinese Forleign Purse, made of tiger skin, with tufts of real tiger fur. It is embroidered in the finest karat gold on the sides, top, bottom, and handle. The middle of the bag in bordered with white topaz beads that follow the lines of the stripes."

"I enjoy what you have brought me. I thank you warmly." She nodded, and he headed back downstairs.

Man after man came, most of them snarky and ugly. They brought her things like new clothes and accessories; some even offered shares in their business portfolios. Like a girl would want that.

But, Kimi really could care less about most of the things she got. What she really liked getting were homemade presents, or something out of the ordinary – out of the realm of a 'princess'.

Sometimes she dreamed of working on a farm, or being part of the Delta Kingdom, where all the magic is. Magic just sounds cool, you know?

She was in the Alpha Kingdom, though. And she knew her parents would never let her go there. So, she guessed dreaming would be as good as it gets.

She hadn't really seen any men that she felt romantically interested in – yet. But she also hadn't seen her brother. Bright orange hadn't highlighted the party floor quite yet.

'I hope he comes' she thought. She sighed and placed her hands on the rails once more, locking her elbows and looking over at the crowd of males. 'I still have to dance. Ugh. This party is getting boring since I can't find a guy I like.'

Suddenly, Kimi heard loud footsteps coming from the hallway outside the door behind her. "Whoever could that be?" she whispered to herself.

The large double doors slammed open, and In entered a scrawny, panting squire, an exasperated look spread across his face. He approached the King and whispered something in his ear. At first the king looked shocked, but then he nodded and walked towards the balcony.

"What's wrong, fathe-"

"I am sorrowful to announce that my son and heir, Sir Arlo Takayama Kashi the Third is now dead. He, along with his family, was attacked by assassins. They are all gone from us."

Kimi stood up. She started to walk towards her father.

"So, whoever marries my daughter will receive heir to the throne!" the crowd below him mumbled ferociously. Kimi grabbed her father's arm and forcefully pulled him to the side.

"Father, what is the meaning of this?!" She exclaimed in a hushed tone.

"I don't know what you mean."

"Your heir is DEAD. And you haven't shed a single tear." Her own tears started to well up.

"He was a mistake child. He could never do anything; couldn't play any sports or instruments, and nearly failed school. I never planned for him to become the heir at all. His passing is not a problem to me since it was never to my interest to be proud of a failure."

Kimi gasped and backed away slowly. In a fit of rage, she stormed out the double door. She ran through the kitchen, across the balcony hall, down the stairs, and through the foyer. She slammed the front doors open; ran and ran, and never looked back.

All she could think to do was run. She didn't care about who would miss her or if anyone would look for her. She just ran and ran; never stopping.

As she ran, she stepped in mud, scraped against trees, tripped many times on roots; all causing her to lose her heels, and ripping her dress and skin.

Even when she felt like puking, she continued. She didn't want to go back. Ever.

Eventually, after running for what seemed like forever, she pieced together what seemed like a gate of some sort; her vision was blurry, not helping the current situation. As she curiously lifted her head to see how tall it was ,she fell over in the process – unconscious.

(Kimi's POV)

As I slowly faded back I noticed some one - or thing - with bright pink all over their head carrying me. I tried shifting to become more comfortable, but this caused them to notice me, to which I was placed on the soft dirt, against a tree.

I opened my eyes further, adjusting my sight. I figured out it was a boy that had carried me; he looked around my age, but his hair was bright pink and very long, and his clothes were very scraggly. His face made me think about Arlo…

I slowly started sobbing. The boy noticed this, and came closer. I looked up with a teary face to see him, right there. I was startled slightly.

"W…why are you crying?" he asked. His voice was very quiet and conceded, like mine. It was cute.

I wiped my tears and wore a fake smile; you know, the thing princesses get special training for to master.

"Oh, nothing," I lied. I sighed and continued. "It's nothing."

He slowly approached me and grabbed my chin with a curious expression. I flinched slightly in surprise.

"There is something. You're being weird." This caught me by surprise. I batted his hand away.

"It's nothing you should be concerned about," I remarked with a serious tone. When I looked back at him, he was still looking at me, his eyes full of excitement. I sighed and relaxed my shoulders.

"Ugh, fine. Alright. My name is Kimikoami Amaya Kashi… you can just call me Kimi, alright? Well, I am royalty. I have this older brother with orange hair, too. He is my favorite. And today, I had a party to find my fiancée… it's something rich people do. But, I found out that he died, and nobody cared… I couldn't take it. So I ran away."

The boy rubbed his chin and mumbled to himself. "Ah, that makes sense."

"W-what does?" I asked suspiciously.

"Well, at first, when you said royalty, I didn't believe you, since I've never seen you on the TVs before. But then I remembered I found you on the other side of Heaven's Gate-"

"You picked me up from the other side?! That's illegal! And that gates are watched 24/7! How could you have possibly achieved that?!"

"Um, in case you haven't already realized, you're in Delta Kingdom. So I just used my powers."

"You didn't hurt them, did you?!"

"No, no… here, close your eyes."

I was hesitant at first, but quickly agreed. I heard his voice soon after.

"Ok, open."

I opened my eyes to see nothingness before me. "Okay. So you're fast?"

"No… reach out."

The voice seemed painstakingly close. I cautiously reached out, and felt something soft, and stringy. I moved my hand more to the left and felt something jutting out. I quickly pulled my hand away.

"What was that?" I asked.

"Silly, that's just my nose." I tried squinting, but all I could really see was a faint outline of the boy. I reached out again, and caressed his face with my hand. This was so unreal…

"I'm not invisible anymore." I guess I had become to amazed. I pulled my hand back in embarrassment. "S-sorry," I blushed.

The boy chuckled. "You're the weirdest person I've ever met. Ever. And that's a while."

"How old are you?"

"I think I'm 18."

"You think…?"

"Well, one day I woke up, and there was nothing in my memory. It felt like my life slate had been wiped completely clean. I couldn't remember anything."

"Well… can you at least tell me your name?"

"I… don't have one…"

I looked at the boy in concern and sympathy. I felt really bad for him, so…

"Hey, I thought of a name for you."

"Really?! Tell me now! I really want a name!" his eyes were full of joy. I couldn't help but tear up and smile brightly when I gave his name.

"Your name is Arlo… Arlo Takayama."

"Arlo… Takayama? Cool! Sounds super awesome! Thanks Kimi!" He embraced me tightly, with excitement. I almost couldn't breathe at one point.

Once he let me go, I realized I had been pretty cold this whole time. I looked at him.

"Are you cold too?" I asked.

"Oh, sorry. I guess I didn't cry your hair very well…"

"…huh…?"

"Well, you were very beaten up and muddy, so I washed you in the river."

I looked down to notice I was bare. I quickly wrapped my arms around my bent knees. I felt like an utter fool,

I finally realized my hair was damp when I felt cloth land on my head. I reached up to see he had thrown me his shirt.

"You can wear this," he told to my face. I quickly pulled it over my head. It covered my bottom as well as the previous dress did, but at least I had some sort of sleeves.

"Come on, let's go," he instructed as he nodded me in the direction he was walking.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"Somewhere." I giggled and caught up. Finally… a life out of royalty. Maybe now I can be free…


	2. Chapter 2

Heritage

Chapter 2

As Arlo and Kimi walked through the forest, in search of civilization, they slowly got to know each other better. Once they had reached a town, they were the best of friends; at least, the best you can get by conversing.

As they cautiously approached the village, a very kind and noble aura surrounded them. It felt very… safe.

A lady walked out onto her front porch, when she noticed to two kids, she came rushing over.

"Oh my goodness!" she exclaimed. "You two little darlings are so beat up and grimy! What have you been doing to get so dirty?"

"We've been wandering around the forest a few days now," Arlo mentioned.

"Well, that's a sure fire way to get dirty – and starve, while you're at it! Won't you come inside so you can wash up?" she insisted.

"We wouldn't want to be trouble," Kimi replied worriedly.

"No, no, no trouble at all! At all!" she persuaded. "You'll come inside, won't you, dears?"

Arlo followed Kimi inside. She was ready to get a proper bath, finally. Feeling dirty wasn't something she was used to at all.

Arlo paid particular attention to the décor lining the room. Light blue and brown lined the walls, with sleek wood floors. It felt like a very comfortable and at-home environment.

"Alright missus, I'll run a quick bath for you so I can patch you up while the boy takes one after you." Kimi had an instantaneous flashback to the party. She grabbed her head and looked up with a smile glued to her face. "Of course."

The lady left the room. Kimi hastily ran up to Arlo and sat beside him on the couch. "Isn't she super nice, Arlo?" she said excitedly.

"Yeah, I guess…"

"What do you mean, you guess? Who could you possibly have met that were sweeter?"

"My par-" Arlo remembered Kimi didn't like hers, so he kept his mouth shut.

"Your parents, right?" she ended. Arlo looked at her surprised.

"How did you know?"

"Well, I know that even if you don't remember who you are, it's instinct to trust your parents… so I understand where you're coming from."

Arlo sighed, then chuckled. "You sure are a princess."

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing." At that moment, the lady came back in the room.

"Time for your bath, dear."

"Alright." Kimi followed her to the bathroom. She shut the door behind her.

She observed her tiled surroundings before laying down in the bath. The warm water was extremely comfortable. She lay lower into the water, flashbacking on her previous life.

Back in the living room, Arlo was conversing with the lady, who was now preparing dinner.

"So, you two are sibling?" she confirmed.

"Yeah," he lied. "Not pure-blood, though. Our dads are different. We met a while back and have been traveling alone ever since. We ran into a bit of trouble in the forest, as you can see. But we stick together through everything."

"So, can you tell me a little about yourself?" she asked.

"Sorry, but I have amnesia," he responded. "About a year ago, I woke up and couldn't remember anything. I was on a bed in an abandoned hotel about to be demolished, and I don't know how I got there. So, yeah."

"Oh, I'm sorry dearie. What about your sweet sister?"

"My Onee-chan? She said she was royalty at one point, but ran away from home." He answered.

"Hm," the lady pondered. "Even though you two look completely different, you sure get along mighty fine. "

"Yeah, I guess… I never really noticed…" Arlo commented.

"You know what?" the lady sighed. "I never even introduced myself. How rude I am. My name is Jenneca. Jenneca Harley."

"I would tell you my sisters name too, but we have different last names, and I can't quite remember what it was."

"That's okay, dearie," Jenneca replied. She continued to simmer something on the stove.

"So, Jenneca…" Arlo began.

"Yes, pumpkin?"

"Do you-"

"Thanks for the bath, miss!" Kimi said as she entered the room. She didn't know that Arlo was talking.

"Her name is Jenneca Harley," Arlo added.

"Oh, arigatou, Jenneca-sama!"

"That's all fine and dandy, Kimi-chan."

"Arlo-nii, it's time for you to take a bath! I started the water for you." Having to say his name again accidentally made her twitch her smile. She sat down on the couch and watched Jenneca twitched.

Arlo noticed her strange behavior but blew it off. He headed in the direction of the bath.

"…and I'll just let that sit for a while," Jenneca said after placing a lid over the pot. "I think it's about time I tended to your wounds.

"Yes, please!"

Jenneca grabbed her first-aid kit out of the cabinet and headed into the living room. She sat Kimi on the ottoman while she sat on the couch behind her. She started to placed medicated bandages over the small wounds. As she worked her way down, she came across an awfully large and deep gash on her left thigh.

"Oh, your poor little leg! What happened?"

"Oh, we were in the forest, and we were running… and I tripped. It got scraped against a branch that was jutting out of a root."

"It looks terrible! I'm going to have to disinfect this." She grabbed the rubbing alcohol an dripped some on a cotton ball. She softly rubbed the edges of the cut. Kimi winced.

"I know dearie, it'll sting for a bit. But I promise you'll get feelin' better lickity split!" After she was done, she placed a medicated gauze pad over it, and wrapped it in bandages. Kimi stood up and stretched her leg.

"You're right, it feels better already!"

"Just don't move around too much, alright sweetie pie?"

"Yes ma'am," Kimi replied.

"You know what, I think I'll go fetch you two some clothes to borrow."

"Oh, that would be so nice! Thank you!"

As she walked away, Jenneca paused and turned towards Kimi. "You have such nice manners. I guess it matches up to what your brother said… but I didn't catch your whole name. Maybe if I hear it I'll recognize you…?"

"Oh, it's… Kimikoami Amaya… Kashi."

"What a pretty name-"

"Jenneca-sama? …can I tell you something?"

"What is it punkin?"

"I… I'm from… never mind."

"Well, if you ever decide to tell me, I'll always be here, in Farey. K?"

"Y-yes, ma'am…"

Arlo walked into the room with a towel around his waist, and another one in his hands rubbing against his scalp. "Wacha guys talkin about in here?"

"Oh, that's right, I was going to fetch you two cutie patooties something to wear. Be right back!" Jenneca left the room. Arlo sat on the couch next to Kimi.

"What'd you talk about?"

"I just had my wounds covered up, and I told her my full name."

"She didn't say anything, did she?" Arlo warned.

"No, no…" Kimi wandered off. She thought for a moment before speaking again. "Hey, Arlo?"

"What?"

"You wouldn't mind if I trimmed your hair, would you?"

Arlo looked at his hair and back to Kimi. "Actually, it's really long, and it's making my neck really hot. A trim would be nice."

Kimi grinned and pranced into the kitchen in search of a pair of scissors. Once she found a pair, she hurried Arlo onto one of the dining room chairs. He flipped his hair over the back of the chair before sitting up straight to make it easier to cut.

Kimi started just trimming off most of his hair, starting the cuts around his shoulders. After all the excess was off, she started to layer his hair, then trim it one last time. She remembered her hair stylists do her brothers hair like this. She grinned widely on the inside.

"Done!" she exclaimed. As Arlo looked at himself in the mirror, Kimi swept up all the hair scraps and threw them in the trash can. Just then, Jenneca walked back in and noticed Arlo.

"I see your sister gave you a trim, huh?" she commented.

Kimi giggled happily. "It looks so much better now!" she exclaimed.

"Uh, yeah…" Arlo agreed warily.

"Well, I have ya'lls clothes. One for Kimi," she handed something green to Kimi. "…and one for Arlo." She handed a white t-shirt and jeans to Arlo.

Kimi unfolded her article of clothing to discover it was a green and white polka-dotted spring dress. She slipped it over her towel, and pulled the towel out underneath. Arlo changed behind the couch.

"Do they fit good?" Jenneca asked.

"Yes, this dress is very pretty!" Kimi exclaimed joyously.

"I wore it when I was around your age. It was my favorite dress in the whole wide world. Eventually I outgrew it, so I couldn't wear it anymore… why don't you have it?"

"Is that really okay?" Kimi asked excitedly.

"Why of course!"

Kimi bear-hugged Jenneca and ran to the living room to join Arlo on the couch. Jenneca chuckled and went to go check on dinner.

"Where do you think she got these male clothes?" Arlo asked

"I don't know. Maybe she had a husband who passed away."

Arlo shivered. "So, I'm wearing a dead guy…" Kimi bonked him on the head. "Bakano~"

Arlo rubbed his head and sighed.

"So, Arlo…"

"Hn?"

"You REALLY don't remember anything about your past?"

"…No, why?"

"Well, you look an awful lot like my brother."

"Speaking of which, what was his name? You never told me."

"…Takeshi. Takeshi Shiho Kashi the Third."

"Really? That name's cool too!"

"Thanks."

"So, I've also been wondering…"

"Yes?"

"Since you were royal and everything… wasn't living where other people did everything for you really easy? I mean, it sounds a lot more cool than living like a commoner."

"Well, even though many people think it's all awesome and care-free… it really isn't… I'll tell you this: up until I ran away, I dreamed of nothing but living like I am now."

"…really?"

"Yeah! It sounded so much fun. Doing whatever you wanted, going wherever you wanted; like a bird, free…"

"…"

"…"

"Really?"

"…"

"…"

"…really."

"Well then, what was your brother like?"

"…He had hair like yours, only orange. Bright orange. And bright green eyes like mine. His favorite color was orange, and he had a very bright smile and personality. His wife and kids were beautiful, too.

"He probably would've liked you a lot. He liked the kind of people that could take care of others, and themselves… someone who was also kind and generous to all.

"He really liked rice balls. I never knew why though. They're just… so plain, and white, you know? I always like things with color, that popped out. Anyway, he was big and tall, and was always kind to me. He listened to me play the piano and sing, and he would help me learn to dance in the ballroom.

"He… never really was good at anything in particular. He didn't go through school with flying colors, and he wasn't good at sports.

"The last time I saw him was after I played my song to him. I wish I could have finished…"

"Why didn't you ?"

"My mother came in and interrupted the piece. It was time for me to try on a dress."

"For that party thing you mentioned a while back, in the forest?"

"Yeah, that one."

"What did you play for him?"

"I was called, 'Musician'… the official name was 'Tsunaida Te ni Kiss Wo'."

"Sounds pretty."

"It was."

"Dinner's ready!" Jenneca called from the kitchen. As she was placing the pot and bowls on the table, the two children sat down.

"Itadakimasu~!" they both yelled as they both got their serving of the soup and chowed down.

As they were eating, Kimi paused to speak.

"So, Jenneca-sama, we were wondering. Where did you get the male clothes from?"

Jenneca paused from eating and looked up at the girl. "Oh… they belong to my son-"

Just then, the front door burst open. Kimi and Arlo rushed to see who it was. Jenneca rushed up and quickly followed them.

(Kimi's POV)

When I got to the door, there was a young man standing in the doorway, probably a few years older than me. He had dark skin and strange white hair with a blue streak in it. His eyes were a faded gray.

He turned to me and stared at me. When he didn't say anything, I spoke up.

"Why are you here?" I asked.

He chuckled at me degradingly. "Uh, I live here, dumbass."

'Dumbass?! He's gonna pay…' I thought to myself.

He looked at Arlo and growled. "How come he's wearing my clothes, mom?!"

"I let him borrow them, dear-"

"Those are my clothes, mom. And how many times did I tell you to stay out of my room?" he slowly approached Jenneca.

"I was just trying to help these poor souls."

"Help, my a-" I quickly rushed towards the two, stepping between and holding out my arms.

"You won't touch her." I said defendingly.

"Who do ya think you're talkin to, ugly?"

"I AM NOT UGLY!" This guy was really pissing me off.

Arlo grabbed his arm. "Leave her alone."

"Who're you supposed to be? Her boyfriend? Or did you get friend-zoned, skippy?"

I blushed profusely. "H0he's my brother, jerk!" I answered his question.

"Oh yeah? Prove it."

"Huh?"

"Go and give him a peck on the lips. Won't hurt, right? I mean, you are family and all…"

I tried to ignore his demand by standing my ground, but eventually he grabbed my shoulders.

"Come on, wimp. Do it." He shoved me to the right, causing me to run into Arlo. Our heads collided, lips smashing together. When I landed on my butt, I turned my head and blushed. What a jerk! How could he have the nerve to do that?! I'm gonna teach him a lesson!

As soon as I raised my head, I heard a loud smacking noise. I looked farther up to see that Jenneca had slapped her son across the face. HARD.

"These are my guests. I will not have you treating them in this manner," she commanded her son. He picked himself up and stormed outside.

I picked myself up as well, and ran after him. I didn't hear Arlo run after me, so I assumed he stayed behind to help Jenneca.

I ran and ran in the direction the boy ran. I couldn't seem to find him, but I kept looking.

Once it got really dark, my extreme paranoia started to set in. I was diagnosed at a young age with mild Paranoid Schizophrenia, but I'm still really paranoid; about many things. Fire, water, stairs, cars…

…the dark…

I eventually came to a river, where I sat by the bank and curled in a ball. I tried to make the bad thoughts go away, but they kept getting closer… and closer…

…and closer…

I screamed out in terror. I couldn't take it anymore. I jumped up and ran down the bay of the river.

Once I reached the shore, screamed again. I tightly gripped my hair in terror, falling to my knees in tears.

When I felt a sudden presence, I started to calm down. I embraced this presence back; maybe this feeling could last forever…

I looked up to see the boy. I became so startled I jumped back and yelped, scurrying backwards. He stood up and approached me, holding out his hand. I hastily grabbed it and let him help me up.

After talking to him for a while near the shore, I learned his name was Toshiro. He was named Japanese, like his father.

"…so, you basically get afraid of things really easily, right?" he confirmed.

"Yeah…" I replied shyly.

` "…hey."

"Yes?"

"I'm sorry about earlier. _I_ was being the asshole."

"Oh, it's okay… so, why did you hug me?"

"Huh? Oh… I guess, It was just hard to watch you. Being in pain like that…"

"Well, thanks."

"Oh, and by the way."

"Wha-" suddenly, Toshiro pecked my cheek. I blushed again.

"W-wha… what was t-that…" I stuttered.

"My apology. For when I made you kiss that guy."

I leaned back and giggled. This guy apologized weird.

We eventually made it back to his house. After apologizing multiple times to his mother, he got permission to follow us. We then continued our venture throughout this vast world.

Brother, if you can hear me… I love you. And I'm sorry I didn't get to say it sooner.


	3. Chapter 3

Heritage chapter 3

Tonight was frigid, unlike most other nights they had experienced. The group left Toshiro's house three nights ago; since then, they hadn't had any problems.

Until now.

Kimi's lack of clothing on her arms and most of her legs kept her up - she couldn't sleep.

Even though she had trouble sleeping most nights, tonight was the worst. The cold air, hard ground, and unsteady heart beat wouldn't let her rest.

'This sucks,' she whispered to herself. 'It's so cold.'

"You're awake too, huh?" She jolted up at the sound of Toshiro's voice.

"Oh… yeah…"

"Is he awake too?" he pointed to Arlo, who was sprawled across the ground.

"As I far as I can tell so far, he'll sleep anywhere. One time he fell asleep while we were walking." She giggled softly.

Toshiro followed up her laughter. "Yeah, I've noticed that too.

"So, I guess I should help out…"

"By doing what?"

"Here, just watch." In a split second, a small flame ignited on his extended fingertip. He gathered the wood they found earlier when they tried to make a fire by hand, and some leaves that were strewn about. All in one pile, he lit the collection of dried items, watching them burst into flames.

"That's so cool!" Kimi said. "But, why didn't you use it earlier?"

"I don't like to think of my powers as any easy way out of tough situations. I wanted to use it at the last moment, when we needed it most, or couldn't find any other solution."

"I like your way of thinking," Kimi commented. "And I guess that explains earlier,"

"What earlier?" Arlo asked. Kimi was surprised by his sudden awakening, and teetered.

"Oh, nothing, nothing!" she remembered how warm his hug felt, how it all added together. "But, Toshiro got the fire started for us!"

"Oh, that's cool." He fell back asleep.

"What a weirdo," Toshiro added. Kimi laughed.

"Yeah…"

The two continued talking, and eventually fell asleep. Kimi dreamt about having powers, and using them for good. What would happen, she wondered, if she had powers as well…?...

Kimi woke up from a dream that turned into a nightmare to find herself alone in the sunlight. She checked her surroundings to confirm.

"I wonder where they are-"

"AH!" she heard from the forest.

"That was Arlo!" she rushed in the direction of the scream. 'I hope he's alright…'

When she approached the scene, she saw Arlo wading in the water, and Toshiro by the shore. Every so often, Arlo would turn invisible.

"What're you doing?" she asked.

"Catching breakfast," Toshiro replied.

Arlo threw three fish into the air in one fell swoop. Toshiro sent yellow flames towards the carps, cooking them evenly. They landed on shore. Kimi noticed there were other cooked fish there as well.

"You guys seem to work well together-"

"work together, my ass! He's burned me three times already!"

"You got in the way of my aim."

"That's a bunch of bull shi-" suddenly, a small person popped out of what seemed like a pocket in his clothes. It floated over to Arlo and bonked him on the head.

"No." The tiny creature simply said.

"Wh-who're you?!" Kimi said warily. The figure floated to land and grew in size – human size.

It was a brown-haired individual, with dark blue eyes and square reading glasses. He wore a green and black striped shirt and brown kackys. He wore no emotional expression on his face, just landed on his black dress shoes and shifted his glasses.

"I'm sorry, but the real question is, who are _you_?" Kimi looked curiously as this figure, and pondered his question.

"I…I don't know what you mean…"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I'll put it into manners you will understand.

"The only one who hasn't done anything so far is _you_. We met this fellow," he remarked pointing to Toshiro."…before we met you, and he's helped more than you have. So, the real question is, _why are you here_?"

The simple question tugged at her heart. She had no idea how to respond. She became so confused and embarrassed she fell to her knees in confusion. "I…I…don't…I don't…"

The figure approached her. He looked down at her in disgust. "You shouldn't be here if you don't use magic. I know why you were in the other land, too.

"Kimikoami Amaya Kashi, daughter of King Hesano the Second. At her marriage party when the news of her brother, Sir Arlo Takayama the Third was dead. Nobody cared… he was a mistake child from the beginning. You became angry, and ran away from home, like a whining toddler. You ran so far you exhausted yourself at the gate; then this fool brought you over."

Kimi grabbed her hair and tried to pull the memories out of her conscious. She didn't want to remember…"

"You named me… after your dead brother…?" Arlo looked at Kimi, who looked back at him with teary, pain-stricken eyes.

She couldn't handle this pain. The embarrassment. She knew nothing good would come out of living.

She slowly stood up, but bolted. Running again…? How pathetic.

But running seemed to be her only way out of situations so far. So, she ran. And ran.

Did running away actually solve anything? Of course not.

But she didn't have powers…she couldn't do anything else, anyway.

But, how great it would be to be able to. To help people. How weak she felt, being a normal human.

"Please…" she muttered while running, leaving a trail of tears behind, "Please… just let me be somebody! Someone who can save someone's life, be strong… but still be soft and gentle…"

She felt a sudden ping in her being. When she looked up after stopping, she realized she ran to a town. It was new, and she hadn't been there before.

As she prodded through the town, she looked at all the different buildings she had never seen before.

A ramen shop, and small clothing store, a dojo…

A dojo? Maybe she could learn there…

She gingerly approached the establishment and read the sign posted on the sliding door.

Anheria Dojo

Yuro Town, Delta

Sensei – Drake Anheria

Now accepting new students

Fees – 10 Krea/hour

Welcome

[AN: Krea is the form of money in this land. Same as dollars, only they don't use change, so they only have Krea.]

Kimi sighed. "I guess I have to find a job first," she muttered.

She pranced around town, desperate to find something she was good at. With what she looked at, the best she could find was a dress shop, needing a fitter to try their dresses on. She walked in.

"H…Hello?" she called out. A young-looking man with long dark green hair rushed out the back. His purple eyes lit up with excitement.

"You wouldn't happen to be here for the job application, would you?" he asked excitedly.

"Yes, I' m here for - whoa!" The man grabbed her arm and hastily dragged her to the back of the small store. The next thing she knew, as frilly white dress was on her.

"You look so _lovely_ in dresses!" the man squealed excitedly. "You're hired!

"Oh, and I'm sorry… I never caught your name! Mine is Toushiki Amagai!" He held out his hand.

"Oh, it's… Kimi…" She gently grabbed his hand and shook.

"So kawai~!" Toushiki said. "So, I'll probably have you trying on five to ten dresses on a day, and your pay will be… 20 Krea and hour?"

"Yes, that works!" she said.

"I'm glad low pay works for you!" he said excitedly. "Now, for the next dress…"

For the next few hours, she tried on dress after dress.

When they were done, Toushiki handed her a large-seeming lump of yellow strips of paper.

"Here you go, 120 Kreas! I'll see you tomorrow at 10 AM, correct?"

"Yes!" Kimi said as she took the money from the tall man. "Thank you, Tou-chan!" she called as she ran out the door.

"Hm, such a cute nickname," he pondered as he got to cleaning up. "Such a bright child.. whoever raised her raised her well…"

Kimi first rushed around town, looking for a place to crash. She eventually found a place – Yuu Bed n' Breakfast – that charged 60 Krea per night. It was a small hotel; perfect.

She entered, rented her room, and headed out to buy something to carry in. She found a small white satchel, for 30 Krea. She bought it.

"So, only 30 left, huh?" she asked herself. "Well, I'll be working more hours tomorrow, and I can just enter the dojo and apply to be a student. I think I've done good so far." She smiled and headed to the dojo.

She slowly opened the sliding doors and walked inside. It felt like she walked into a bamboo forest.

"Can I help ya?" she heard a gruff voice. She turned to see who she assumed to be Drake-Sensei; he had short brown hair and weird white eyes.

"Um, yes… I would like to-"

"sorry, I don't take in sissies."

Kimi grunted and raised her voice. "I'm looking for a place to become stronger. Take me in, please." She bowed to the man. Drake chuckled.

"You seem to have hidden potential. I like it." He stood up and held out his hand. "My name is Drake Anheria. Call me Anheria-sensei from now on.

"So? What's your name then?" he asked.

"Oh, my name is Kimi."

"Kimi, huh? Pretty delegate name. So, what do you look like?"

"What do I-" Kimi stopped herself to realize. "I have purple hair and white bangs. My eyes are big and bright green."

The man tousled her hair. "Yep, that matches the description. Welcome to my dojo, Kome."

"It's Kimi…"

"Oh, yes, right. So, what brings you to my dojo?" he asked as he sat down. Kimi sat down as well before answering.

"I really wanna learn if I have the power inside me, and I want to harvest it… I want to finally be of use…"

"Hm. Touchy. I guess you came to the right place." He lit a cigarette and continued. "So, I can assume you can't really do anything."

Kimi sweat-dropped at how straight-forward the man was. It reminded him of Toshiro…

"Um, yeah…" she sighed. "But, I know I can do it!"

"That's the spirit," he smirked. "I'm open at 4 PM. That a good time?"

"Yeah!" Kimi responded. She stood and bowed. "I'll see you later, Dra… Anheria-Sensei!" she called as she left.

"Hn… Drake-Sensei, huh? I guess It has more of a ring to it… but I haven't been called that in years…" he took a puff and blew it out. He leaned against the wall, thinking about his own past.

Kimi walked back to the hotel and flopped onto her bed.

"I'm hungry… I'll just wait for morning to get breakfast, then go to work." She glanced at the small clock hanging on her wall.

"8, huh?" she sighed. "I guess sleeping early wouldn't hurt…" she drifted off, after not sleeping in a bed for a week or two.

Like always, it started as a dream, and turned into a night mare. She woke in the middle of the night, sweating. She stood up and headed to the bathroom to wash her face with cold water.

After dousing her face, she decided to lay back down and try to get more sleep. It took a while, but she finally drifted off. Her last thoughts before slumbering sung to her in her dreams. "Lonely, so lonely…my friends are gone, gone…'

She earned 160 that day, promising to Toushiki that she would come in from 8 AM from that day on. After eating a quick lunch that cost her 30 Krea, she headed to the dojo.

"Welcome," Drake greeted her.

"Hi, Anheria-Sensei-"

"Please… Drake-Sensei is fine…"

"Okay, Drake-sensei-

"Anyway, why don't we start?" Drake handed her a small orb.

"What is this?" Kimi asked.

"When you touch it, and focus hard enough, you can tell if you have magical powers or not."

Kimi tickled the cloudy orb with her fingertips, caressing the mysterious object.

"Start whenever you're ready."

"R-right." Kimi sat down, focusing all of her energy. A first, it didn't glow, or anything. She tried focusing harder and harder, but nothing worked. She sighed.

"Try thinking about something that makes you want to be stronger," he gave her as a piece of advice. She nodded and continued.

She gently held the orb in her hands as she started from the beginning. She thought of her brother, how she met Arlo, then Toshiro…

Then of the scene the previous morning. How she got yelled at. 'Why are you here?' 'You don't belong here.' 'You don't have the power.'

'_Why are you here_?'

She felt a different presence around her. When she heard a sudden, "Whoa!", she looked up.

She could barely see Drake through the wind that was surrounding her. She flinched, causing the wind wall to vanish. She coughed, catching her breath she never realized she had stopped.

"You… you're power… is incredible…" Drake gasped. Kimi looked at his excitedly.

"Yes! I have power!" she cheered. "Isn't it great, Drake-Sensei?"

"Yes, it is quite impressive, for a first time," he said, astonished.

"I'm so glad that from now on, I can help people!"

"Well, we still have more to do."

"Huh?"

"But that'll have to wait til tomorrow. Go ahead and go home." Without arguing, she did as she was instructed. She realized how dark it was once she stepped outside. "I really do need to get home," she said to herself as she headed in the direction of the hotel.

"Who're you?" she heard someone say. She turned around to see a girl, accompanied by a blue-haired boy.

Her blonde hair, with its red bangs and tips, ruffled in the cold night wind.

"Oh, sorry… I'm Ki-"

"I don't want your name. I want to know what you were doing in that dojo."

"Oh, I was trying to find my own magical abilities-"

"Finding your own abilities? At the age you're at?" she laughed. "Dream on. It'll take you years to master it; you don't have that long. I would give up and go home, girlie."

Kimi turned away and walked towards the hotel. Once she landed on her bed, she softly sobbed.

"They're wrong," she said to herself. "I can do it. I can…"

She fell asleep in her own tears.

She dreamt about her brother… he slowly turned into the worst nightmare yet. She slowly prayed, for him… for him…


	4. Chapter 4

Heritage chapter 4

Kimi woke up in a daze. She almost completely forgot about her new life. She wondered if Arlo – or whatever he may go by now – and Toshiro were living well without her…

She stretched, got dressed, and walked downstairs to eat breakfast. She glanced at a clock on the wall that told 5:49 as she closed the door.

They had prepared a buffet of scrambled eggs, biscuits, and meat gravy. She grabbed small samples of each and ate. Once she was done, she went back upstairs, brushed her hair, gussied up, and headed to town early, to look around. It was around 7 when she left, so she had time.

As she turned a corner, she passed by a familiar face – the blue haired boy. When he stopped, she stopped as well.

"Hey, um…" he began. "Sorry, about yesterday… she didn't really mean everything she said…"

Kimi looked at him in distrust. He held out his hand. "My name is Alex. Alex Matsumoto. 'Sup!" He grinned wildly.

Kimi grabbed his hand and shook gently. He seemed like an okay guy…

"Oh… it's Kimi…"

"So…why _were_ you coming out of Anheria-Sensei's dojo?"

"Do you go there to train too?"

"Kinda…so…?"

"Oh, right. Well, I recently reached this village, and I really want to recover my inner power…I'm tired of being useless…"

"Ah, cool!" Alex gladly replied. "Where are you going?"

"Oh, just walking around town before going to work…how about you?" she asked.

"I don't really do anything…Momiji kinda pays for me…"

"Is that her name?"

"Oh, yeah. Momiji Suzumiya."

"That's a really coo, name."

"Yeah, I think so too!" Alex and Kimi walked and conversed for quite a while. When it came time for her to go to work, he followed.

"I see you brought a friend," Toushiki commented.

"Yeah, his name is Alex Matsumoto. We're going somewhere together later."

"Say, boy…"

"Yessir?"

"You wouldn't mind working for me too, would you? I need a nice male to try on tuxes for me."

"I wouldn't mind," Alex said.

"Alright then! I'll just pay you like I do Kimi-chan!" he nodded to Kimi.

"Yes, Tou-sama!" she giggled. Alex chuckled and sighed.

For the next few hours the both tried on multiple different types of dress apparel. When it was 4PM, they left with their pay, and headed to the dojo a few streets down.

"You're really cool, Kimi-chan!" Alex said.

"You can just call me Kimi," she giggled.

"Oh, okay, Kimi…" he muttered.

"And I like you too, Alex-kun. I hope we become really good friends!"

They opened the doors to the dojo. Alex noticed Drake sitting in the corner first.

"Ohaio, Anheria-sensei!" he yelled excitedly.

"Sup, Alex. You're here too, Kimi?"

"Oh, yeah…"

"So you guys met each other in town or what?"

"Oh, we're friends now, Drake-sensei!"

"That's good," Drake commented. He stood up and handed each child a pot of something gooey-looking.

"Wha…what is this…?" Kimi asked curiously.

"Smell it."

Kimi was a little hesitant, but Alex wasn't. He did as soon as he was asked. He seemed to pause.

"Why isn't he moving?" she asked.

"For a short while, time stops for your body. Your spirit enters your inner being; it's only safe to try it five times and hour, but the goal is to find your power's true form. If you can achieve that, then you move onto trying to release it."

"But, why is Alex doing the same thing I am?" she asked.

"…let's just say you progress a lot faster than others," he mumbled. Kimi uneasily nodded and smelled the weird goop. It didn't smell like anything…

She suddenly felt…different. It was like she was being squeezed tightly from everywhere. She could walk, but she didn't feel what she was 'stepping on'.

Suddenly, nothing but black turned into a very long corridor, with a door at the end. Once she started walking, she assumed that the corridor would keep getting longer and longer, never seeming to end…she was wrong. She walked through the door.

But there was another identical door, at the end of an identical hallway.

This continued for quite some time, making Kimi bored and tired.

"Can you not just come out?" she asked. "Please?"

There was no response.

She sighed, and pondered. Of course they wouldn't just come out'. That was too easy. Maybe, she could-

Kimi was flung back to her body, causing her to tumble to the ground, coughing.

"It'll take a while to get used to. But you'll get it eventually." Kimi looked up at Drake, then shifted her vision to Alex, who was still.

"Why is he still quiet?" she asked.

Drake chuckled and sighed. "Actually, he's come back three times already. You seem to be really good at extending your time."

"…really?" Kimi thought about how short it seemed to her; it must be extremely short periods of time for Alex.

She smelled the transparent gel, but with a plan. When she entered again, she looked behind her. She saw what she expected.

"My past," she mumbled. Her entire life flashed before her eyes. She burst into tears, but kept a somewhat straight face; trying to face reality.

"Good…" she heard a whisper.

"Where are you?" Kimi asked.

"Wrong…" Kimi was flung back into her body. She was thrown into another coughing fit.

"You're awesome, Kimi!" She looked up to see Alex watching her.

"Oh…thanks…"

"Three more tries, kid."

"Right." She smelled the pouch once again, repeating the previous step. "Good…" she heard again.

"I'm ready." She said strongly.

"Close…" she heard. This time she wasn't immediately thrown back.

It took her a few seconds before speaking again. "There are more than one of you, aren't there?" she heard a sort of raspy grunt.

"Because, when I asked before, I didn't use the right pretense. So you couldn't answer, right?" she heard silence, but she knew she was right.

"I am your master," Kimi called out into the echoey nothingness. "You will show yourselves to me."

She felt a hand on each shoulder. When she turned around, she saw two completely unidentical beings – one was tomboy-ish, the other reminded her of her past.

They both simultaneously stepped in front of her and smiled. One was warm colors… ponytail…the other was cool colors…curly…

"We'll see you later," both voices whispered. She was thrown back again.

She didn't cough this time, but was thrown back a bit. She looked at her surroundings; Alex was sleeping against a wall, and Drake was nowhere to be seen.

"How long…was I out…?" she stood up and looked out a nearby window to see it was now dark. She walked over to Alex, tempted to wake him. She hesitated.

"Finally." She turned around to see Drake at the doorway. He was carrying a plastic bag in his hands full of something – he probably went to the convenience store down the street.

They both sat down next to Alex, who woke up shortly after they cracked open their peach sodas. Alex grabbed one too, and opened a pocky.

"It was sunset when you last went in," Drake explained. "You were out for quite a while. A few hours, in fact."

"Does that mean you met the image of your power…or whatever?" Alex asked excitedly.

"I think so…" Kimi wavered. "I kinda saw what they looked like…"

"Even getting them to show their forms is a big step. Good job, Kimi."

"Thank you-"

"_Why are you here_." Kimi and Alex swiveled around.

"Hello, Momiji," Drake sighed.

"Momiji!" Alex jumped up and ran towards her. "About time you got here! I fell asleep waiting for ya!"

"Alex."

"Yeah?!"

"_Go away_." Alex slowly backed away from Momiji, joining back up with Drake and Kimi.

"Why are you here?!" she quickly paced towards Kimi. She grabbed her by the neck and forced her up.

"I came of my own free will." Kimi responded.

"You don't belong here…GO AWAY!"

"I won't!" Momiji looked in surprise at Kimi. "I'm not going to back away from something so easily."

Momiji became infuriated. She squeezed hard on her neck. Kimi rolled back her eyes.

In a flash, Drake used one arm to grab Momiji, and the other to catch Kimi. Momiji growled.

"You will stop this foolish behavior, Momiji."

Momiji glared at him for a short while before escaping his grasp and running out the door. Kimi coughed, catching her breath.

Drake sat her down. "Are you alright, kid?" he asked. "I'm sorry about-"

Kimi shot up and bolted out the door. She zoomed by familiar faces as she ran.

The two figures entered the room. One leaned against the wall, while the other took Kimi's soda, chugged it, and passed out.

"That's something she'll do," the first one said. "So you better get used to it."

Drake looked up at them and smiled. "I knew she was hiding something from me," he chuckled.

"Who are you two?" Alex asked curiously.

The first one walked over and kicked the second one awake. They shook their head in surprise, but grasped the current situation.

"Just call us good friends," the tan boy said.

"Yeah, really good friends!" the pink-haired boy chuckled and grinned.

Kimi eventually saw Momiji's figure in the distance. She had stopped to catch her breath, and had sat down on a grassy hill, near a small river.

Kimi approached cautiously. "Momiji-"

"Go away." Her voice was stern.

"Just let me-"

"I said go away!" Momiji gave a quick look-behind with her tear-stained face. Kimi smirked softly and sat by her.

"I'm sorry." There was a short silence.

"Why're you sorry, idiot? I'm the jerk."

"I'm sorry I couldn't make you like me sooner." Momiji looked at Kimi in surprise. She became worried when she noticed her shivering.

"What's wrong? You gonna cry too?" Momiji asked. When she looked back at her, her head was in her arms. "Hey, you okay?"

Kimi started to shake violently, holding in the screams.

"Ah shit, what do I do?!" Momiji panicked. "Baka, why do you have to be so confusing?!"

Momiji stopped to think. If she were shivering, then she were cold. So if she were cold, then…

She turned towards the frightened girl and embraced her tightly. She loosened her grip when Kimi stopped shaking.

"M…Momiji-chan?" Kimi looked at her with teary, pain-filled eyes. She managed a grin. "Arigatou…"

"About time you figured out what to do," all four boys walked up to the scene. "If you had waited any longer, we would have had to come in and help."

"Who're you?" Momiji asked rudely. She looked back at Kimi when she heard her gasp. "A…Arlo? Toshiro…?"

"Hey, Kimi. Sorry about the other day. My chara really likes arguments and debates… and likes to play detective too… I know it sounds stupid, but…he thought we were playing…heheh…" Alro rubbed the back of his head, like he always does.

Kimi jumped up out of pure joy and embraced both boys. "Welcome back, Kimi," they both said.

"Momiji, you should get to know these two dudes! They're super cool!" Alex gushed.

Momiji stood up and gave her own hug to Drake. "Onii-chan…stop making it look like your picking favorites~"

"…onii-chan?"

"Oh yeah, Kimi, I guess you're the only one that doesn't know." Kimi looked at Arlo in confusion. "Drake told us when we were in the dojo. Momiji is his adopted sister, and she clings to him like a lost puppy. He doesn't have very many girl students cause they usually get scared away by a jealous Momiji."

Kimi giggled. "T…that's adorable," she chuckled.

"I-It's not funny!" Momiji blushed.

Kimi walked over to her and gave her a hug. "Let's be friends, hn?"

Momiji blushed and grinned. "Yeah…"

"Oh, and Kimi…?...by the way…" everyone looked at a guilty Arlo. "Um…he really wants to apologize…"

Out popped the brown haired boy. He looked very serious, but when he approached Kimi, a single tear rolled down his emotionless cheek.

"I'm sorry…" he bowed in apology.

Kimi returned his apology with a hug. He turned tiny again and shifted his glasses.

"I'll be heading back now-"

"SUGOI~!" Alex screamed excitedly. He grabbed him tightly and closely inspected him.

"W-what are you doing?!" he asked.

"Come on, man! We don't even know your name!" Alex insisted upon the tiny soul. He sighed and muttered aloud.

"It's Yoshi…"

"Awesome, man! Super cool name, bro!" Alex released Yoshi, he in turn adjusting his glasses and brushing his miniature clothes.

"I'll be going now…" he replied as he seemed to be encased in an egg, then lowered back into Arlo's pocket.

"I wanna see yours too!" Alex approached Toshiro. He sighed heavily, and called out. "You heard him."

Out popped an egg; a blue background, with a small flame in the middle.

Out popped a skinny, more on the taller side figure. He had long light brown hair, but his ponytail in the back was black. His eyes were a pale purple-gray; he had scars all over his body. He wore a black t-shirt with flames on the seams, and black shorts. He wore shoes that matched his shirt.

"My name is Kaname," he said after growing. He politely held out his hand to Alex. He grabbed it and shook violently. Kaname recoiled, then regained his composure.

"I'm happy to meet you all," he said to the group. "But it's awfully chilly. I'm heading back now." He reentered his egg, and drifted back to Toshiro's pocket.

"Hey, Momiji, do you have a chara?" Kimi asked.

"Actually, yes I do…" she said. Two different eggs popped out of the pockets in her shorts. One had something like a black bird with its wings spread – the other had a pocket watch on it.

"The one on the left is Tsubasa." She pointed to the bird, and out popped yet another male chara. He had medium-length wavy black hair and sparkling gold eyes. He wore a black overcoat, and a black hat. "H-hello…" he mumbled gingerly.

"As for the other one, they still refuse to come out," Momiji explained. "I think it's a she, though…"

"That's cool!" Arlo added. "Can't wait to see what's inside!"

"So Kimi," Toshiro said. "I heard you have magical powers."

"Yeah! And today I met them!" Kimi replied happily.

"That makes me happy," he said back. "I know you really like helping people."

"Yep!" she giggled.

The group headed back to the dojo; they concluded they may as well finish the snacks.

They sat in a circle, telling stories and sharing secrets. Alex talked about his love for video games, and Momiji talked about her love for her brother. Kimi followed her up on that one.

As soon as Arlo finished talking about his love for sleep, he passed out. Toshiro picked him up, and Kimi showed them to her room.

Toshiro threw Arlo onto the futon. "Go ahead and sleep," he said. "I'll join him later." He pointed to Arlo.

Kimi giggled and rushed to the bathroom to change into her pajamas. She snuggled in her sheets, and slept.

Midnight. Toshiro had been hearing mumbling coming from the other room for a while now. He walked in to see Kimi tossing and turning about. Arlo joined him at the doorway.

"I feel bad for her," he sighed. Toshiro followed him up by nodding.

"Well, I guess there isn't really much of a choice." Toshiro flopped onto the bed, next to her.

"What are you doing?" he whispered.

"It worked last time, right?" Toshiro replied. Arlo shrugged and hopped onto the other side of the bed, passing out immediately.

'Wierdo,' Toshiro thought as he himself drifted into slumber.

Back at their apartment, Momiji was watching television. Alex was in his room, playing video games on his PC. He was getting pretty ticked off.

'Noob!' 'You're weak!' 'Owned!' 'Camping faggot!'

He usually let it slide, but this time it made him angry.

As this continued throughout the night, his was about to whoop some twelve-year-old ass with some language – he felt a different presence.

"Dumbass noob bitches! Shut the fuck up!" they yelled into the microphone. Alex giggled and high-fived them.

"Good job, bro!" he said.

"No problem!" Alois replied.


	5. Chapter 5

Heritage Chapter 5

Alex walked excitedly over to the dress shop. He met Kimi at the front.

"Guess what, Kimi?!"

"W-what?" she asked curiously.

"I met my chara last night!"

"Really?" she asked excitedly. "Awesome!"

"Yeah! Look!" a small black egg with a green power symbol on it lifted out of his shirt pocket. From inside came a girl. Once she turned into human-form, her details were more easier to recognize.

She had short red hair and red eyes. She had piercings in her ears, nose, lip, and brows. She wore black and green headphones, too. She had on a red jacket over her black shirt and red pants. She wore black shoes and biker gloves.

"'Sup." She introduced herself. "I'm Alois."

"Oh, hello! I'm Kimi!" Kimi held out her hand greeting-ly.

Alois gripped it tightly and shook up and down like a maniac. When she was done throwing Kimi, the purple and white-haired girl landed on the ground.

"Y…y-yeah…" Kimi said woozily.

Alex laughed. "Come on, let's go inside."

Halfway through the day, Toushiki remembered an important piece of information.

"Hey kids, didja hear?" he asked them.

"Hear what?" Alex asked.

"It's so big, it came from the other kingdom! The Kings son died, and his daughter ran away!" Kimi stiffened. "Can you believe something like that happened?"

"N-nope…sure can't" Kimi looked over at a worried Kimi with curiosity.

"Well, it's a shame the king doesn't have an heir to the throne – since his daughter ran away and everything."

Their work ended a few hours later. As the two walked down the street to the dojo, Alex brought up the previous subject.

"What do you know about it?"

"…about what?"

"About the princess."

"…nothing."

"You can't fool me. You know something. Why don't you just tell me? Don't you trust me?"

"(sigh) alright. I'll tell you."

"Awesome!"

"I am the princess that ran away. Arlo found me and helped me when I was injured. And then… it all played itself out."

"Cool."

"…huh?"

"Look bro, I couldn't give a bigger fuck if you were an alien from Mars, or something. All that matters is, we're friends now. And you managed to make friends of me without me realizing that you were a princess. So, why should I care?"

"…arigatou, Alex-kun."

"No sweat." They reached the dojo, Arlo and Toshiro waiting for them outside. They all walked in to spot Drake leaning against an opposing wall.

"Why are you two here, too?" he asked the two older boys.

"Just here to watch."

"Alright." He responded. He slowly leaned on a wooden sword he was carrying to help himself up off the pale wood floor.

"Today, I guess we'll help you, Alex, control your powers. And Kimi, you're gonna have to make your charas come out."

"Got any advice?" she asked.

"Hm…maybe think about what made you want to have powers in the first place."

Kimi focused her thoughts on the topic at hand.

Maybe her friends were why she wanted her magical powers…no, not really…they helped, kinda, but she wanted her power before that. Because she ran away? No…it just didn't fit the bill. She thought long and hard…

Suddenly, she thought about Arlo – her brother. Maybe…his death sparked a light in her, that made her want to be someone strong…maybe his death was necessary for her to attain her power…

He didn't…do it for her, did he?

In a flash of light, a wall of wind surrounded Kimi, blowing her hair upwards. She continued her concentration.

But then that would mean that he knew about her powers…did her dad know too? What else could there be to this mystery?!

She knew there was only one solution: to go back to the castle and find out.

The wall erupted into super-sonic speeds. In a matter of seconds, Kimi started to glow a blinding light, causing the wind to cease. When the light evaporated, she was holding something in her hands.

"Kimi! Are you okay?" Arlo asked. Kimi slowly stood and held out her hands.

"Look!" she giggled with teary eyes. In her palms she held two eggs.

Upon closer inspection, one egg had a light blue background, with a sun. The other had a dark purple background, with a crescent moon.

"They're so cool!" Arlo commented with joy. Kimi nodded in agreement.

"Good job, kid." Drake said. "I guess now you can join him." He pointed to a frustrated Alex, getting scolded for doing something wrong.

"Whatcha guys doing?" Kimi asked.

"This retard can't seem to get the form of his weapons right," Alois grunted. "You've seen it a million times before! A diamond sword is light blue, not light purple!"

"I'm sorry!" he apologized. "It's really hard!"

"…diamond sword?" Kimi was confused.

"(sigh) lemme explain," Alois began. "Ya see here chicka, I was born from his love for video games. So I'm tryin to teach 'im how to use all the different weapons from his favorite video games. See, a diamond sword is something you use a game called Minecraft. You kill zombies, spiders, and green penises with faces with it. Get tha picture?"

"Uh…yeah…" Kimi never had any experience with games, except for the dating sim games she played on her laptop that she never told her parents about.

Momiji walked through the doors. "You're early," Drake commented.

"Yeah, I wanna work on this stubborn piece o' shit egg that won't freakin' open."

"Go for it."

Momiji joined Kimi and Alex. While Alex was still trying to get the fundamentals of color differences, Momiji sat crisscross on the floor. She pulled out the egg with a pocket watch on it and stared at it intently.

"Come on, come out already…" she mumbled. Kimi sat next to her and laid her two eggs on the floor in front of her.

"Come out…please?"

"They're not gonna come out if you're that soft on 'em, dumbass."

"Oh, then…what do you think I should do?"

"I'm wondering that myself," she got back to staring at her egg. "What can I do to make you come out?!"

"Can I suggest something?" Toshiro spoke up. "Sure, shiro-kun!" Kimi said.

"Well, I had the same problem as you did when I found my powers. I couldn't seem to get him out. But, the power isn't what your lacking, it's what they're lacking."

"huh?"

"What I'm saying is, they lack the self-confidence. So you have to re-confidence themselves, somehow."

"How'd you do it?"

"Well, I convinced Kaname that the world wasn't as cold as he thought it was."

"That makes sense," Kimi spoke up. "Since he's fire and everything."

"K, I'll give it a go." Momiji pulled the egg up to her face. "If you're shy, then just come out." No response. "I promise I'm not mean." Still nothing. "…I'll give you a cookie?"

The chara suddenly popped out of its egg. "Where are the cookies? I heard something about cookies," the female chara said. Tsubasa came out of his egg to meet the new chara.

"H-hi, I'm Tsubasa," he mumbled while sticking out his hand. She held it and shook gently.

"Hello, my name is Manami. Nice to meet you." Manami had on a green dress with pink ruffles for borders. She also had a gray vest with a green gemstone as a button. She had short blonde hair she parted over her left eye, and bright green eyes. She wore grey boots. She also had blonde cat ears and tail. Wrapped around all her limbs and her tail were golden chains of some kind. In her hand seemed ot be the source: a pocket watch.

"Hi, Manami." Momiji smiled at the chara. Manami smiled politely back.

"Hello," she replied.

Kimi was now fully committed. She focused all of her mental energy into the palms of her hands, which she held her two eggs in.

She tried her hardest not to get distracted as she concentrated long and hard on the objective at hand.

She got to thinking again, something she usually does a lot of.

'So, maybe, I should think about what made them come out before?' she thought. She reached deep into her own mind.

'I am your master,' she commanded herself over and over. 'Both of you…please.'

A ball of light surrounded the girl. When it disappeared, two small people appeared. They transformed into a bigger state.

"Whoa, sugoi~!" Alex cried out. Kimi stood up.

One girl had mid-length orange hair in a ponytail, with first red highlights, then yellow inside the red. She wore a black t-shirt with white polka-dots, and a red, orange, and yellow tutu. Underneath she wore light blue leggings and white tennis shoes.

Another girl had her hair down, but wore a headband; the color pink. Her light purple hair and bangs flowly gently. Her bright pink eyes sparkled. She wore a poofy purple dress with darker purple mesh-like material over the waist and below. There were pink ruffles outlining the borders of the dress, and a giant pink ribbon in the back. She wore also brown dress shoes.

Both girls looked at Kimi and smiled. "I'm Tenpi," the orange one said. "I'm Fuki," the other replied. Kimi lit up with joy.

"Oh my god…this is so cool!" she giggled excitedly. "I'm so happy to meet the both of you!"

"I'm very pleased to meet you too, Kimi-sama," Fuki said. Tenpi sighed.

"You're so boring! Here, let me show you how it's done." She cleared her throat. "'Sup, dawg! How's it hangin' brotato!"

Alex laughed. "She's super AWESOME!" he exclaimed.

Tenpi bowed. "Thank you, thank you."

"Alright kids, I think the introductions need to come to an end. They can continue AFTER the lesson," Drake spoke up.

"Yes, Drake-Sensei," Kimi said. She turned to the two charas.

"So, before I start practicing, I want to know when a good time to practice would be.

"Cause I know that Toshiro's chara likes it when it's hot, so I thought that maybe you guys liked to train in specific areas…?"

Tenpi looked her in the eyes and grinned. "You're smart! You figured it out!

"I like to train in the day," she replied.

"I like to train at night, please," Fuki said along with Tenpi. Kimi smiled back.

"Yes, that sounds reasonable!" she exclaimed. "So, since it's still day time, I'll train with Tenpi, so Fuki, if you want to, you can go back into your egg!"

"Yes, I would enjoy that. I am a bit tired…" Fuki retreated back into Kimi's pocket.

"Alright, Tenpi. I'm ready to learn."

"Can we go outside? I really like the sun, and stuff," Tenpi requested.

"Sure!" Kimi and Tenpi ran outside. Toshiro and Arlo followed.

Back inside the dojo, Momiji and Alex were struggling.

"You moron!" Alois yelled.

"I didn't come out to see you fail!" Manami exclaimed. Botgh individuals sighed in disappointment.

"This is hard, huh," Alex said,

"Yep," Momiji replied.

Both youngsters stood up and brushed themselves off.

"Onii-chan, we're gonna go get a drink down at the convenience store real quick, k?" Momiji sighed.

"Yeah, sure," Drake mumbled. The two charas followed them out the door.

They entered the store, causing the bell to make a 'ching' sound as they stepped into the cool atmosphere.

"It feels so good in here!" Momiji exclaimed.

"You're right on that one," Alex agreed. "It's super-hot outside. I hope Kimi doesn't dehydrate or something."

"We should bring her something, too!" Momiji proposed. "And her friends, as well."

"Sounds like a plan." Alex smiled.

Kimi sweated heavily, panting as she tried to learn the techniques. Tenpi wasn't breaking a sweat.

"Come on," Tenpi encouraged. "You gotta try harder if you wanna get it!"

"O-okay!" Kimi said confidently. She regained the required position.

She remembered what Tenpi had told her before. She reflashbacked the whole conversation.

'So, you gotta stand like this,' Tenpi lightly spread out her legs, turning slightly. Kimi did the same.

'Then, you have to speak this "chant",' she explained. 'But it's only to release the character change. We'll work on character transformations later. Anyway, you have to focus all of your power, and speak the incantation set to my chara.'

'What is it?' Kimi asked curiously.

'Alright. It goes like this… "Bring forth the light that shines upon this dark world"…it's kinda dramatic…'

'That's okay,' Kimi responded.

Kimi turned slightly. After closing her eyes, she focused her power. While she was focusing, she thought about music; she slightly sang the incantation.

"Bring forth the light that shines upon this dark world…" she felt the strange wall of wind again. She felt the sudden instinct to turn rapidly in time with the wind. As she stopped spinning when the wall vanished, she carefully landed by doing a quick flip and landing on the…air! She noticed something different about her hair. She felt, noticing it was now in a ponytail – it was in a clip the shape of the outside flames of the sun, like how a child would draw it. She turned to Tenpi.

"Good, good!" Tenpi congratulated. She gave a small clap and smiled broadly. Kimi blushed proudly.

"I-I feel different," she claimed.

"Good," Tenpi replied. "It's perfectly normal if it takes a while to get used to it."

"O-okay," Kimi said. She looked at her feet, and lifted one up to glance at the sole. There were tiny, white flames emitting, somehow not burning the sole. It was like wearing rocket shoes, only you couldn't tell – it looked like she was running in air, flying…

She excitedly started playing in the air. She danced, spun, sang, leaping from place to place. Tenpi giggles in amusement.

"She sure does find ways to have fun easily," she mumbled to herself.

"Hey, Sun-chick!" she heard from a distance. She looked up to see Alex and Momiji.

"That's Tenpi to you, gamer boy," Tenpi followed up.

"Where'd Kimi?" Momiji asked. "We brought her a drink."

"If you're lookin' for that knucklehead, I think you should look up." Tenpi extended her fore finger towards the sky. Both children looked up in amazement.

"Holy crap, dude!" Alex yelled to Kimi. "You're flying!"

"Oh, hi Alex-kun, Momiji-chan!" Kimi called from above. She hopped down, like an alley cat jumping from wall, to trash can, to box, to pavement.

"Here, Kimi…" Momiji handed her a strawberry soda. She giggled in excitement and grabbed it eagerly.

They all opened their sodas, Tenpi as well.

"So, looks like you're progressing kinda fast, huh?" Momiji commented.

"Cause I'm super amazing!" Kimi said back. She felt…different when she said it.

"Never thought I'd hear that come out of your mouth, bro," Alex commented playfully.

"That's right, I need to warn you," Tenpi said. "You two listen as well, it concerns you, too.

"It will definitely take an extended amount of time to get used to character changing; even if you have been going the pace you are, this step is almost virtually impossible to breeze through.

"So, I need to tell you – sometimes, certain actions bring out this 'other personality'. I could imagine in Toshiro's case, if it were winter, he probably character changed without chanting anything, and freaked out. You might also blurt out something you didn't think about hard enough, so be careful, k'?"

"Yosh~" all three teens replied. Tenpi grinned and finished off her soda, placing the empty can on the ground.

"Well, I'm just as tired as you, so I'm gonna go back," Tenpi stretched and returned to small form. She retreated to her egg and placed herself into Kimi's pocket.

Kimi sighed, exhausted. She hadn't ever really worked this hard before, things were just done for her. It was different but…she kinda liked it…

"We should all go back to Onii-sans real quick," Momiji stood up. Alex followed, along with Kimi, trudging behind the two. They slid open the door and stepped inside the bamboo-forest.

"You're back," Drake said across the dojo. "Bout time."

"Sorry, Anheria-sensei," Alex said apologetically. "We got caught up in the moment, and…"

"(sigh) Whatever. Momiji and Kimi are here too, correct?"

"Yes, Onii-san."

"Yes."

"Good, Kimi's here." He stood up and approached the three. When he was able to signify who was Kimi, he signaled her.

"Here." Kimi curiously followed the man into another room.

"Stay here." He swiftly pulled a cloth up to her mouth. She fell into his arms, as he slowly lifted her into a tall section into the closet. He closed the doors to the closet, then the room.

He walked back out and shifted the key between his sweaty fingers. He threw them in the sweldering fire.

"Wh…where's Kimi?" Alex asked. He looked at him distrustingly.

"Onii-san, what's going on?" Momiji pleaded.

"She's taken care of," he answered.

Alex rushed up to him and grabbed his collar with force. "Where the hell is she? What did you do to her?!"

He looked straight-forward, as if distracted by something. "None of your concern."

Alex was fed up. Without realizing it, his clenched up fist found its way to Drake's jawline. As Drake stumbled backwards, Alex stormed out of the room, where he locked up Kimi.

"KIMI! KIMI, CAN YOU HEAR ME?!" when he received no response, he stomped out of the dojo.

Momiji looked from one male to another before deciding. "Alex…!" she followed him out the door. Drake grabbed his jaw and grimaced.

"It's best if they don't know…" he muttered.


	6. Chapter 6

Heritage Chapter 6

Momiji frantically followed Alex in whatever direction he was going. She was worried what he possibly had planned.

He seemed to be headed towards the apartments, but when they went two stories higher than their room, she knew he had something planned – she didn't know if It would be good or not, so she could only hope, she guessed.

Alex walked briskly up to room 804 and kicked the door in. Two groggy faces looked out from other rooms towards the doorway.

"Oh, it's you guys," Arlo said with a mouth full of toothpaste. He spit it out in the sink. "What're you doin' here? And where's Kimi-chan?"

Alex sat down on a nearby chair and sighed while placing his head in his hands, to which his elbows rested on his lap. Toshiro came out of the kitchen eating something along the lines of cereal.

"Do you want me to tell them, Alex?" Momiji asked. Arlo and Toshiro became immediately interested.

"No…(sigh) I'll tell 'em." Alex sat up and let out a long breath before continuing.

"Something is up, and I want you guys to help me figure out what."

"What do you mean?" Toshiro questioned.

"Anheria-Sensei locked Kimi in a room, and he won't let us in there. When I call for her, she won't answer. And since he isn't usually like this, I think something's wrong."

"I guess it makes logical sense," Toshiro added.

"Is she really okay?" Arlo asked, concern imminent in his tone.

"Yeah, she should be," he said. "In that short amount of time, there isn't really anything extremely terrible he could have done to her…maybe knock her out…"

"Well," Toshiro began. "Maybe we should investigate town, dig up some gossip."

Momiji stood up boldly. Alex chuckled slightly. "If it's rumors you're lookin' for, leave it to me! I've got this one in the bag!" she gave everyone an assuring thumb up. Arlo looked puzzled; Toshiro remained nonchalant.

"I guess we never told you," Alex explained, reading his facial expressions. "We both have pretty peculiar talents.

"Momiji here can dig up gossip from anywhere," he finished.

"What about you?" Arlo asked excitedly.

Alex grinned and relaxed in his chair. "Well, I guess you'll find out when the time comes."

Arlo sighed in defeat. Toshiro stood up, ready to take action.

"We should go ahead and investigate," he pointed out. "Come on Arlo, let's go get dressed.

Arlo remembered they both were only wearing tank tops and shorts.

"Okay, okay! Stop pulling on my ear!" he complained.

All four met up in front of the biggest fountain the city offered. They followed Momiji to wherever she planned on taking them.

"I know that most of the gossip comes from bars," she explained. "So I would like you two to tackle that later, when it's darker," she pointed at Arlo and Toshiro.

"Good gossip also comes from beauty supply shops."

"I know somewhere we can go," Alex offered.

"…really?" Momiji questioned.

"(sigh) I work there, don't worry," Alex defended himself. They opened the doors.

"Why hello~ Alex-kun~" Toushiki squealed excitedly. "Are these more of your friends? And where's Kimi?" He threw questions at them like they were a dart board, ready to aim at.

"Kimi's gone in sick," Alex lied. "But I- we came for something."

"What can I help you with?"

"Do you know any good gossip around? My friend here," pointing to Arlo. "…and his assistant," pointing to Toshiro. "…are journalists. They want the inside scoop; we thought we could get it from you."

"I actually have heard a few interesting things lately. Shall I make some tea to discuss it over?"

All five sat down at a small Japanese-style table in the back of the store.

"So the first thing is about Drake Anheria," he said with obvious delight in his breath. "There's been rumor that he knows someone with the 'Gateway Powers.'"

Toshiro seemed to be the only one who understood that phrase based on the looks of total confusion plastered to the others faces. Toshiro sighed in disappointment.

"I'll explain," he sighed, annoyed. "It's this legendary power, kinda like a myth. Well, at least to the people of the Alpha kingdom. Here in Delta, it's been pretty likely for it to exist. So hearing about it makes anyone wanna know more."

"Unfortunately, that's all I heard about that," Toushiki remarked sadly. "But, I do have other things, with more detail.

"Alex-chan~ remember when I talked to you about that princess?" He looked in the boy's direction. He was answered with a nod.

"Well, the King became so furious after searching most of Alpha, he's started to issue soldiers in Delta to search for the princess! All of the guards that work at Heaven's Gate are being questioned thoroughly. It'll be a lot of bustle; I can assume those guards won't leave until they find what they're looking for, so who knows how long it'll take for things to settle down again."

All of the children perked up in surprise. They never thought about this sudden possibility. They completely forgot about the whole 'past debacle' thing.

"You don't say," Toshiro lowered his head slightly into a thinking position.

Alex slapped his own forehead. "How could I be such an idiot!" he proclaimed.

"Whatever do you mean?" Toushiki asked.

"H-he had his information mixed up," Momiji lied. "That's all. We were gonna help these two, you see. And they asked about this before we came here; seems he got some of the information jumbled up."

Toushiki chuckled whole-heartedly. "Well, that's common. But don't worry. You heard the truth from me!"

"You're really cool, guy!" Arlo exclaimed.

"We never got your name," Toshiro pointed out.

"Oh, my name is Toushiki. But you can call me what my dear Kimi-chan calls me…Tou-chan…it has such a sweet ring to it!" he chirped.

"Well, we'll see ya later, Toushiki!" Alex called.

As the other teens walked outside, Toushiki waved for Alex. "Come here a moment."

Alex confusedly walked up to the man, surprised when he grabbed his arm and pulled him close, leaning in to tell him a secret. Alex looked surprised for a short moment, nodded to Toushiki, and slowly followed behind the rest of the group.

The rain wasn't going to stop them, but it didn't help their seething anger pertaining to the situation at hand.

"God Freakin' Dammit," Alex muttered. "Now I have a reason to be guilty for punching Anheria-sensei in the face."

The group of teens headed in the direction of the dojo. To their misfortune, the streets were lined with guards. They didn't seem familiar.

"Th…the guards…they're from Alpha Kingdom…" Momiji gasped.

"We have to hurry," Toshiro panted as he continued to sprint down the street. The others trailed him.

They almost didn't know they reached the dojo when they did. It was surrounded by armored men.

"How are we gonna get inside?" Arlo spoke over the clanking and loud murmuring.

"We'll just have to push our way through." Alex was the first to blend in to the crowd.

He dodged and ducked through the shining metal, He would sometimes get briefly stuck between the plates of steel, but quickly found his way back to an open space so he could continue forward.

'When am I going to reach the stupid door?!'

O~o~o~o~o

There were faint knocking sounds coming from the outside that woke her up. She rubbed her eyes and rolled her neck groggily. It took her a few seconds to remember what happened.

"A…Anheria-sensei!"

"I heard a voice!" A sudden cracking sound completely woke her up. Kimi flinched in the small closet, curling herself up into the corner.

"Sir, there're no doors in here!"

'Huh?'

"It must have come from some other room then."

"There are no other rooms, sir!"

"Well then, we have no choice. Bring out the Firefly."

'Wh…what's that?!' Kimi thought.

All Kimi could hear were the sounds of crackling, and the smell of smoke. 'It's creeping in here…'

Kimi tried to breathe through her shirt, to no avail. When she heard the footsteps leave, she waited thirty seconds before opening the door.

"There's…a layer of plaster in the way!" Kimi pulled the crumbling and steaming hot wall out of her way. She gasped.

"F…fire…"

It felt as if the fire were engulfing her. She rested herself on her knees and tried to calm down.

"G…g-gotta check…for others…"

Kimi shakily stood up and stumbled out of the room. As she dodged the fire down the hall, she heard low mumbles. Running towards them, she found Alex, burnt and bleeding, trying to lift a beam that had fallen on top of Anheria-Sensei.

"Come on, Anheria! Just…let me help you up…please…" Kimi could hear the tears well up in his eyes.

"Gh…augh-"

"Don't speak! Don't speak, Anheria-Sensei! Don't speak! Don't' speak!"

Alex just kept ranting and struggling, unable to do anything.

Kimi began to run towards them, but a flaming beam fell, blocking her from getting further. She squealed out of shock.

Alex turned around sharply. "K-Kimi?!"

"Alex!"

"Kimi, are you alright?!"

"I-I'm fine!"

'Liar.'

"Are you alright?" she asked.

"You have to help me! Anheria-Sensei…"

"I-I'll find a way!"

'You're useless.'

"I'll…"

'Don't lie to yourself.'

"K-Kimi?"

"I…"

'You don't have a solution. You just like to give off false hopes. But what good will that do when they both die?'

"H-Huh?!"

"Kimi, What's wrong!?"

'The door is on your side of the hallway. They have no means of escape.

'Just leave them. You don't need them. They were just pawns for you to use.'

Blood. So much blood. Fire. Screams for help…there was none.

"Stop!"

"Kimi?! Tell me what's wrong! What's going on?!"

'I'll force you to remember.'

"*gasp*"

"KIMIIII!"

Red. Red and Orange. Fires. Lots of fires. Blood. So much blood. Was there any hope? Saving Grace?

Those pleading eyes looked at her with begging forgiveness….

"Nee-san…Onee-san…"

"Kimi! WAKE THE HELL UP!"

"…who are you telling to wake up?!"

"K-Kimi…?"

"I'm much better than you! I can-" Kimi's head went limp.

"Kimi!"

When her head rose back up, her eyes were shining with a bright light.

"K….Kimi…"

The girl lifted up into the air, and bright white light surrounded her whole body. When the light vanished, she was a new form.

"Kimi…is that your Character Transformation?!"

Once Kimi landed on her feet, her eyes slowly changing to their original color. She blinked a few times before staring at her hands in confusion.

'Don't just stand there. Fight!'

"Don't tell me what to do…" Kimi whispered. Ribbons suddenly formed in her hands, wrapping themselves around her wrists. The excess hung, trailing the ground behind her.

She raised her hand, the ribbon automatically lifting itself with her. It wrapped itself around the beam, mysteriously inflammable. When she clenched a fist, the ribbon smashed the beam to smithereens.

Kimi ran up and did the same to the beam that was covering Anheria-Sensei. She also used the ribbons to pick up Anheria.

"Come on, let's go!" she called to Alex. He was on one knee, coughing.

"Alex!" Kimi used her other ribbon to pick him up. When she tried to exit, she found the exit blocked.

'Great. What do I do now?' she thought.

'Use your light beam.'

"What?!"

'Just focus all of your energy into your forehead. There's a symbol there that you can't see.'

Kimi closed her eyes and imagined power building up. Before she realized, it felt like her head was going to explode.

"Ah…AAHHH!"

'Calm down! Just, aim your head towards the door! You don't want to explode, do you?!"

The light beam exploded out of her forehead, but towards the ceiling, disintegrating anything it touched.

'That'll work! Now just fly out here!'

"First of all, I don't even know how to do that! *cough cough* S-secondly…*cough cough cough*"

'*sigh* Fine. I knew I shouldn't expect too much out of a human. I'll take care of it."

Kimi's eyes glowed brightly again. Light rockets appeared on her boots, and she flew out the gaping hole with her 'catch'.

"Look! There they are!" Momiji said with tears in her eyes.

Kimi landed on the ground. Toshiro grabbed her shoulder to stop her from falling.

"You have to hold out a little longer! We have to get away before the guards come back!"

Without thinking, Kimi followed Toshiro and Momiji into the nearby forest, running and running. They eventually stopped at a small clearing.

Kimi dropped to her knees, dropping Anheria and Alex on the ground as well.

"A-Are they all right?" Momiji asked, concerned.

"I…I don't think…so…*cough cough cough*"

"Don't push yourself, Kimi," Toshiro warned.

"But…they're hurt…they won't last very long without help…"

"I can help," Fuki spoke out, revealing herself from behind Toshiro. The little chara glowed white, then seemed to 'enter' Kimi. Her eyes glowed white again. She lifted herself over Alex and Drake, touching their chests. Both glowed white, then became still. Kimi's eyes closed and she fell to the ground, next to Alex.

Both males woke up. "I feel…much better…" Alex claimed. He tried to rest his hand on the ground, but felt skin. He looked down to see an unconscious Kimi.

"Kimi! Are you alright?!"

Drake rubbed his hand on the back of his head and slowly opened his eyes. "Don't worry about her."

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

"Just get her some water and she'll be-"

Before Drake could finish, Alex had scooped up Kimi, and ran off in the direction where he knew there was a river.

Alex sprinted, faster and faster. He eventually reached the river, pretty far away from the rest of the group.

He set her down and scooped some water into his hands. "Come on, drink it!" The water would just slide down her face.

"There's gotta be a way…" Alex shakily poured water into his own mouth. He leaned forward, touching his lips to hers. The water flowed into her mouth.

Kimi coughed, to which Alex quickly released his kiss, blush covering his face.

"W…What happened…?" Kimi asked.

"N-nothing. Just getting you a drink, is all."

"Liar."

"Wh-what?!"

"I can taste the Monster, Alex. Don't lie." Kimi blushed and his her eyes behind her bangs.

"Do you…like me too?" Alex asked.

"I-"

"If you're going to say no, I understand. I'm a really weird guy, and I always get called a stupid Otaku. I would understand if you don't like me at all, actually. I'm retarded and you're a princess. I mean, a princess going out with a peasant? That's just stupid. That wouldn't make anyone happy. And-"

Kimi cut Alex off with her hand. "I…didn't say I didn't like it."

Alex blushed slightly. "So, uh…"

"Just, come here already…" Kimi leaned in for the kiss. Alex did the same.

O~O~O~O~O~O

"Where the HELL are they?!" Momiji pouted.

"Just let them be, Momiji," Drake said with a smirk. Toshiro glared at his intentions.

"What?! Onii-san, what's that supposed to mean?!" Momiji said.

"I'm sure that whatever they're doing, it's useful," Arlo said with a sigh.

The group heard stomping from the distance. Kimi and Alex came running with stunned faces.

"Run!" Alex screamed behind him. The others looked curiously.

A bear suddenly came barreling from the distance.

"Are you FUCKING kidding me?!" Momiji cried.

"God DAMMIT, ALEX!" Toshiro picked up Drake, and ran along with the other two teens farther south, away from the town, and the bear.

"H-how did this happen again?" Kimi asked Alex.

"How was I supposed to know that cave had a _bear_ in it?! Besides, I didn't want anyone to see us…"

"Right…"

"What happens in the forest, stays in the forest?"

"Sounds good to me."


	7. Chapter 7

Heritage Chapter 7

It took the group of six around three days of sleeping on the dirt and eating fish for every meal before they reached a town – a fairly large village by the name of Untahn.

"Ah~ finally! Maybe now a nice bed will be in store," Arlo grinned.

"y-yeah…" Kimi agreed.

"Right…" Alex added.

"What's wrong with those two?" Momiji whispered to Toshiro. "Ever since we left home, they've been acting really weird…"

Toshiro shrugs, which slightly pisses Momiji off. "You sure are a man of few words…"

"Just let nature do its thing, little sister," Drake added.

"…what?"

"Hey guys, look! Some apartments!" Arlo ran towards the fairly tall building. The others followed close behind.

Arlo burst through the front doors. "Room, please!"

"How many?"

"Uh, there's six of us…"

"Three rooms, then!"

"Uh, b-but…"

"Don't worry, the rooms are cheap, but they only fit two. Now, I'll show you your rooms…"

"You guys go find some jobs or something, I'll stall these people…" Arlo whispered to the others.

"Well, guess we gotta get some gold…" Drake stepped outside. Toshiro followed close behind.

"Wait for me, Onii-chan!" Momiji chased after them.

"W-well…guess we should go look for work…" Kimi said.

"Yep…let's go…" Alex responded.

The two exit the building and begin heading down the north street. Nobody seemed to be needing work.

A ways down the street, they came across a commotion.

"I quit!"

"No, you can't quit! Now who will model for my paintings?!"

"I don't give a shit! Leave me alone!"

An angry woman storms away from a desperate young man. Kimi rushes up to him. "Are you okay, sir?"

"Yes, except for one thing…now I'm missing a model, and I'll definitely go out of business if I don't get another one soon…"

"I'll help you."

"Kimi! What are you doing?" Alex questioned defensively.

"I do what I want."

"Wha…" Alex was taken aback by this sudden weird behavior. "F-fine. See if I care what happens to you." Alex continuing down the road.

"Thank you so much, miss," the young man thanked. "Come inside, I'll give you your clothes."

Once they were inside, the man gave Kimi a kimono. She changed quickly and returned to the man.

"I presume you like ancient Japanese culture," Kimi said.

"Yes, and my, you look just like a princess…"

"I get that a lot…"

"Now, turn your back towards me…right like that. Look behind you, but not towards me, off in the distance…perfect! Now, just…" the young man began to lower the sleeves.

"Wh-what are you doing?!"

"I'm sorry, but this is my job. Besides, I won't see anything, your back is to me! Now, just relax…" the man sat by his paints. Kimi slowly lowered the sleeves of her kimono as the man began to draw.

O~O~O~O~O

Alex huffed down the road, hands in his pockets, back hunched.

"Who the hell does she think she is?" he growled to himself. "She's just a stupid princess…she could get hurt…

"What do I care about her?! It's not like she cares about me…"

'I…I love you…'

'Take me…here…'

Alex blushed profusely. "Time to get a job. Yep. Sounds like a plan. Mighty fine plan indeed."

He eventually found a rather small dojo, suspicious with all the calamity that could be heard from inside. He cautiously stepped in.

"You can't take my dojo away from me!"

"Pay the fine, gramps. You're days are done."

"What the hell's goin' on here?" Alex interrupted the party.

"Who're you, punk?" the tall, broad-shouldered tax-payer asked.

"Just stoppin' by for a job."

"You have no business here! Leave!"

"I'll pay you to get rid of them for me!"

"What'd you say, ya old fart?!"

"Deal."

'You got this. The special training better have paid off,' Alois warned.

'Don't worry. I got this.'

Alex felt the power pulse into his hands. He wielded in his hands Link's Skyward Sword from the Legend of Zelda.

"Come at me, bitch."

"Get him, men!" Two fairly large goons rushed towards Alex. With precision and swiftness, he knocked them both to their knees, and towards the ground.

"Wh…what's with you, ya crazy punk?!"

"Scared?"

"Rgh…yeah right!" The man charged Alex. He ended up just like his goons.

"Th…thank you, young man…" the old man muttered. Suddenly, many children came out of hiding.

"H-here, take the pay…" the man forked up $100. Alex began to walk away. "Won't you stay here and work?"

"…I'll be back. But I'm not the one you want. I promise. I'll take care of your 'open space' problem…noon, okay?"

"Alright…"

Alex headed down the street and towards the apartments. He walked inside to a serious conversation.

"…we'll get you that $60 as soon as possible!-"

Alex shoved the money into the apartment-owner's torso. "Keep the change," he said as he walked away.

"A-Alex? Alex!" Arlo followed the blue-haired boy.

"What's the room number?" he asked.

"Uh…53…but, you're acting weird. What's wrong?" Arlo noticed that his normally black t-shirt had a power symbol on it.

"You're…character changed?"

"Whaddaya think, dumbass! Geez, everyone today is so stupid! It's ridiculous!" Alex took the keycard out of Arlo's hand and stormed down the hallway. "Tell Drake to find his way to the dojo on the north side of town before noon, okay?!" he yelled behind him.

"…well, I have nothing better to do…" Alro headed out the front doors of the apartments and headed west. As he walked down the street, he began seeing stands and festival lights. No wonder there weren't lots of people walking around town.

Upon closer inspection, he saw Toshiro walking with a long black-haired man, who looked amazingly just like a samurai from olden days. He approached the pair.

"Hey Toshiro, hey…D-Drake?!"

"Whaddaya think? My get-up unrealistic enough?"

"Why?"

"Look, I'm not the person you'll be wantin to keep with you on your adventure. I was thinkin of staying here, starting my own dojo again, making everything like it used to be."

"Speaking of dojo…"

"Hn?"

"Alex just told me to go to the dojo on the north side of town before noon, and…"

"Well, it's eleven now…guess I better get going," Anheria headed off.

"So, what do you think about Drake-sensei leaving?" Arlo asked.

"He should do whatever he wants," Toshiro said. "Besides, I think staying here would be best for him. He isn't in the best shape nowadays. War makes you weaker, ya know?"

"Yeah…"

O~O~O~O~O

Alex looked at the clock. Seven. Everyone else was home.

Except Kimi.

Everyone else kept saying, "I'm sure she's safe," but they didn't know what she did. They didn't know what happened. They weren't there.

Alex sat up and exited his bedroom.

He ended up sharing one with Kimi when Momiji absolutely refused to let Alex sleep with Drake when she herself should obviously do it. And Alex, of course, said something along the lines of "Well, if I have to…" (by then he was not character changed anymore).

He tiptoed down the hallway and ran down the stairs. Sprinting through the front door and down the street, he headed in the direction they had this morning.

Upon arriving at the building, he ran up to the front door and knocked with all his might. In the middle of knocking with a repeated no reply, he suddenly character changed, knocking the door down with his shoulder.

"Knock, knock! Comin' in!" The building was empty. No voices to be heard.

"Hey, Kimi? Kimi!" Alex knocked down doors, giving himself a path to follow in search of the girl. "God, where is she…"

'The last door…' Alex knocked it down, revealing an unconscious Kimi leaning against the mirrored wall.

Alex rushed over to her side. "Kimi? KIMI!"

The girl woke up with a gasp. "A…Alex? Why are you here?"

"Kimi! You're so stupid! Why'd you accept that job offer?! What did her do to you?!"

Kimi pushed herself away from Alex and stood up. "Stop being an idiot! I have my pay for today, I just fell asleep from exhaustion! What is wrong with you?!"

Alex stood up. "What's wrong with me?! What's wrong with _you_?! Hey, look at me, I'm a pretty princess! I can get away with whatever I please! Now that I'm free into the world, I can do anything without any worries!...Kimi, stop playing house! Not everything is all nice and cuddly! You can't 'princess' your way through every tough situation!"

"Don't speak to me like I don't know that! You think I had an easy life before this?! My brother is dead! My dad doesn't love me!"

"_MY WHOLE FAMILY IS DEAD! DON'T TALK TO ME LIKE YOU KNOW ME!" _

In a sudden pulse, Alex grabbed his headache. It quickly worsened.

"A…Alex?" Kimi asked.

"Stay away from me…"

"Alex, are you alri-"

"_STAY AWAY FROM ME!_"

A burst of power jolted in his veins, relieving him of his control. His mind began to scramble its senses of the present.

"Alex, what's going on?...Alex you need to tell me now!..." Kimi slowly approached the enraged boy with caution.

"Alex-"

"_SHUT UP-"_

The contact of skin echoed through the now reticent expanse. Alex held a single hand up to his tainted cheek.

"WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" Kimi took off in large, unbalanced steps. Alex watched in horror as she bolted off down the north road.

"I…what…just happened?...Alois?" Alex waited for the response from his egg, but received none. 'Great…I left the shell at the apartments…'

"Alois, what'd you do that for?" No response. "Alois!...gah, for the love of…" Alex took off in the same direction as Kimi, ready to get into bed and sleep. 'Oh wait, not even that's happening. I'm sharing a room with her.'

O~O~O~O~O~O~O

Momiji shuffled her feet in angst, a frown spread across her face. She tapped her foot restlessly. Tsubasa and Manami slowly peeked their heads out of their eggs.

"Momiji…it's at least ten. Why are you still awake?" Manami yawned.

"They're not home yet."

"Wh-who?" Tsubasa asked.

"Alex, and that stupid girl," Momiji grunted. She slid against the wall, landing in the sitting position.

Momiji heard the front doors to the apartments open from down the hall. She quickly stood and peered down the way.

Kimi came stomping down the hallway. Momiji approached her.

"Kimi, where-"

Kimi walked right past Momiji. Momiji swiftly turned around and followed Kimi to her room.

Momiji slowly shut the door behind them. "Kimi, what's wrong?! Kimi?" Kimi slowly sat on top of the bed.

"I didn't…" she began.

Momiji sat beside Kimi on the bed.

"I…didn't mean it…" Hot tears rolled down her cheeks as her shoulders shook.

Momiji wrapped her arms around Kimi's shoulders. "It's okay. Let it out."

Kimi fell into Momiji's arms, bawling loudly.

"I-I didn't….didn't mean…i~t…" Kimi whimpered between gasps. Momiji hugged her tighter.

Back in the hallway, Alex walked with his head down, hands in his pockets, back hunched. He leaned against the wall, staring at his bedroom door, trying to block out the sobs.

"I'd sleep in here tonight if I were you." Alex looked at the bedroom towards the right, making eye contact with the man who can't see the pain in his own eyes.

"…right."

"What has he done…" Toshiro mumbled.

"That asshole…I'm gonna make him pay," Arlo grumbled. "He made Kimi cry."

"I know how you feel man," Toshiro responded. "But I don't think I would mess with him."

"And why the hell not?! He deserves an ass-whoopin!"

"Here, look at it this way. He must be in pain too, right?" Arlo responded with silence.

"(sigh) I really don't care how you care with the situation. But _that's _what's stopping _me_."

"…I hate you."

"I know."


	8. Chapter 8

Heritage Chapter 8

Momiji was awoken by the sunshine blinding her through her eyelids. She slowly rose, stretching. 'Waking up sucks balls.'

She lifted herself off of the bed, reaching for her clothes. Peeling off her pajamas, she began putting on her clothes.

"Hey Kimi, need your clothes?

"…Kimi?"

"_AAAHHHHHH_!" The four males heard the scream from their corresponding rooms. They all rushed to the scene, busting the door down.

"What is it?!" Drake exclaimed.

All four males scanned the room. Momiji became excessively angry.

Arlo was the first to notice. "Uh, Momiji-san? Why don't you have a shirt on?"

Momiji bunched up a fist and punched him clean through the wall. "BASTARD"

Momiji slipped on her t-shirt, and began zipping up her jacket as she explained the situation.

"Kimi's gone! Do any of you know where she is?!"

"Geez…that girl…" Toshiro grumbled.

"How come you let her get away?" Arlo asked. He became one with the wall again.

"Where could she have gone, I wonder," Drake added.

"Who cares," Alex said. He began walking out the door. Anheria grabbed his shoulder.

"What's that supposed to mean."

"Look, she can go wherever she wants, okay? She doesn't need someone watching over her night and day. She can live perfectly by herself. She doesn't need anyone in particular to cater to her will."

Alex shook free of Anheria's grip and walked out the door. Nobody followed.

"Wh-what's wrong with him?! Geez, rude…" Momiji chuckled uneasily.

Arlo softly punched Toshiro's shoulder, hanging his head and hunching his shoulders all the while.

"It…hurts."

"I know."

"Stop acting like it doesn't hurt you, too."

"No."

"…damn you."

O~O~O~O~O~O~O

The guard shuffled in his boots, straightening his standing position. The frigid night air nipped at his neck.

'God…weird weather…isn't it summer?' he thought.

A shuffle could be heard down below. He looked down near the foot of the gates to see a cloaked figure. The gender could not be specified from such a far distance.

"Hey! You there! What reason do you have for being here?!"

The guard received no response, to which he readied his rifle. "State your purpose or receive punishment to the full extent of the law!"

The cloaked figure disappeared from the guards' sight.

"Wha…where'd he go?!"

The guard took a double take. "I better tell the o-"

The cloaked figure crossed the gate, brushing the blood off of their hands into the grass.

"...baka."

O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O

The search party wasn't going anywhere. Everyone knew Alex couldn't have gotten far, nor would he go too far anyway. But Kimi, on the other hand – they had no idea where to look. Before they decided to split up, Momiji said she would go look for Alex while the other three looked for Kimi.

'Time to go find the asshole,' she thought.

Alex could hear the footsteps crunching in the grass. "What do you want?"

He felt the other person lay down next to him and assumed it was Momiji.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong."

"I hate it when you lie."

"I'm _not_ lying."

"Never said you did.

"…

"I don't like it because you suck at lying. And it's obvious. And it bothers me."

"Why are you wasting your time caring about other people? Just care about yourself, for God's sake."

"I'll have you know that I don't live life just for myself. Who would want to?"

"Kimi, apparently."

"What?"

"Nothing."

"…How come you're being so solemn and boring? And Dumb?"

"…"

"It's a cowardly move, you know."

"Coming from the girl who hides behind her stupid big brother, clinging to him like a lost puppy."

Momiji sat up. "Look here, buddy, I-"

"Just leave me alone. I don't need anyone following me around anymore. Just go hang around your stupid incest-relation."

"Hey, prick, just for the info, you can't just come into someone's life, make them care, and then just…check out!"

"Tell that to Kimi."

"We're not talking about Kimi right now! We're talking about you!"

"Oh, really? Because right now, it just seems like KIMI is the big _fucking_picture!" Alex noticed they were both standing now. When did that happen?

Momiji extended her index finger and jabbed it into Alex's upper torso, glaring with cold, pine green eyes.

"I don't know _what_ your problem is, and I don't _care_ what happened between you and Kimi, but DON'T blame your, _hissy fit_, on KIMI!"

"And why the hell not?! It's not like you haven't known her for less than a week!"

"Because I can tell that something is wrong with you and I want to help! If venting will fix it, fine, but you can- WILL not plot some _stupid_ revenge plan against Kimi, let alone _any _friend of mine!"

"Oh _yeah_? Well you can take your _stupid_ friendship-pact bullshit, and shove it up your _whore-bitch ass!"_

For a second, Momiji couldn't believe her ears. Neither could Alex.

'Wh-what did I just say?! Why can't I control my body!...Momiji! Run!' Alex thought.

"Wh…what? H-How dare you?!" Momiji defensively stood back slightly, raising her arms defensively as well.

"You heard me! Take your fucking shit and _leave_!"

Momiji flinched before balling up a fist and punching Alex across the jaw as hard as she could. Alex recoiled and grabbed his cheek while hiding his emotionless eyes under his bangs.

"Bastard! Just go and die! See if I care!" Momiji ran off, from the direction she came from.

Alex looked down at his hands before tearing up and clenching his upper arms, shoulders hunched. "What…did I just do? What just happened? What is wrong with me?!...I need to…get away…away…" Alex took off in the opposite direction of the town, running. "I don't want that to…happen again…ever…I don't want to hurt anyone, anymore!

"Kimi…Drake-Sensei…Momiji…even Toshiro and Arlo! If I stay there…I will hurt them more! I have to find a place to go…to escape, where no one will find me…I want to be…alone…"

Alex trudges his feet against the mud, tiring from the run. He rests against a tree briefly, tears rolling down his cheeks as he looked up to the leafy green tree-tops above him.

"I…I'm running away…

"I feel so…weak. So weak, and helpless. I…need to train. I won't show my face to them again, until I can control these powers inside of me! It's…for the best. Right? Julie?"

Momiji sat against the rough bricks of the building, wiping her tears. She heard a rustle near some trash cans beside her.

Slowly standing, she creeped over to the source of the noise, as she was about to pounce, she was grabbed from behind.

"Hey! Let go!"

"Leave him alone!"

'A little girl?!' Momiji thought.

Dropping her guard, Momiji lands on the ground, two small hands tightly gripped around her forearm. As she felt one hand release, she felt another object shakily poke her shoulder – a small knife.

"Don't touch him! You hurt him, and you're dead!"

Momiji slowly lifted her free arm, grabbing ahold of the knife's blade.

"Wh-What are you doing?!" The girl asked. Momiji looked up at her with closed eyes filled with tears and a smile.

"I won't hurt you. I promise. Okay?"

With a short gasp, Momiji fainted.

Toshiro scanned the streets for the girl with purple and white hair. 'I didn't think it would be _this _hard to find her…'

He noticed two young children, pleading something to anyone who might listen. He walked closer to hear the commotion.

"Please…please! Help us! She's hurt! She's hurt!"

Toshiro leaned against a building and closed his eyes. The two children approached him.

"Mister, please! Help us! I didn't do it…she's hurt! She's hurt!"

"Who's hurt?"

"Huh?...Oh! Um, I don't know."

"What does she _look_ like."

"Oh! Yes! Right…um…green eyes…ponytail? Blonde?"

"She me to her."

"But-"

"_show me to her._"

"O-Okay!" The small girl and boy pointed Toshiro in the direction of the injured female.

'We're not going fast enough…these kids are too damn slow…'

In a swift motion, Toshiro picked up the kids, carrying one in each arm.

"Mister! What are you doing?!"

"Point me in the direction of where she is."

"…Okay! Yes!" Toshiro sprinted in the directions he was pointed.

As she turned a corner, he nearly ran into another male around his age, with pink hair.

"Toshiro, woah! Where ya goin'?"

"Follow me."

"Uh, sure," Arlo sprinted after Toshiro, wondering where he could be going.

The arrived at the alleyway. Toshiro almost immediately noticed Momiji's sneakers sticking out from behind the trashcans.

He slowly dropped the kids and continued running to his friend.

"Hey, isn't that Momiji?" Arlo stated, continuing to follow Toshiro. Toshiro looked back at the kids from where he crouched in front of Momiji.

"What happened."

"I-I didn't do anything! I thought she was gonna hurt my bruther, so I pulled out my knife, but…she grabbed it! With her bare hand! And then she just fell over! I don't know what happened!"

"Ah man, dude, what do we do? I-"

"Arlo."

"…Yeah, Toshiro?"

"Go get Anheria. We need to worry about this now."

"…okay." Arlo sprinted out of the alleyway on a search for yet another person. Toshiro sat down next to Momiji, counting the possibilities.

'If she was here, then she must have already found Alex, there's no way she'd just loop in a circle like a moron…something happened with Alex…but what? And why wouldn't they be together?! I don't like this at all…because it means something's seriously wrong with Alex…we may need to find him before anything else, if it comes to…

'That'll have to wait for later…what can I do now? Let's see…It can't be like what Kimi has, Kimi never passed out…and except for the cut, she doesn't seem like she was abused or hit…she just looks pale…'

Toshiro lifted one of her eyelids. Her iris' stood still, no light left in them. 'She's still breathing, so she's not dead…she must be suffering, holding in a burden…'

Toshiro pulled out the ponytail, causing Momiji's straight blonde hair to fall with gravity towards the ground. The tips gently caressed the dirty pavement. The darkness, along with the shade covering her eyes, made Momiji look lifeless. Toshiro stood her up straight, holding a hand up to her head.

"Knew it, she's got a fever…best leave her hair down then…"

"Wh-what?! A fever?! Will she be alright, mister?!" The little girl asked.

"What's your name?"

"M-my name? I-I-"

"My name it Toshiro Harley. What is your name?"

"Uhm…I'm Zoey, and this is my bruther, Dan…why do you want to know our names, mister?"

"Do you have access to any blankets or the like?"

"Uhm…no mister. We don't have any blankets. We live alone, mister."

"Well then…" Toshiro removed his jacket, wrapping it around the shivering girl. It didn't seem to work.

"Hm…" Toshiro cradled Momiji in his arms, allowing her to warm up, and stop her shivering.

"M-mister, what do you want us to do?"

"Come here."

"O-okay…"

"Help me with this."

"B-but…"

"If you can't provide me blankets, you have to provide me with some warmth. So get over here and help me."

Both of the young children clung to Momiji from her left side, opposite Toshiro.

"M-mister…how long do we have to sit here?"

"Until Arlo comes back."

"When will other mister come back?"

"I don't know."

"…okay, mister."

Toshiro and the two children sat in silence with Momiji in their arms for what seemed like a dreadfully long time.

"Mister…you're really warm…"

"Yeah. I get that a lot."

The silence continued on for another long while.

"Mister?"

"My name is Toshiro."

"Mister Shrio?"

"Shiro."

"Mister Shiro?"

"Yeah?"

"Is she you're girlfriend?"

Toshiro nearly fell over. He ignored the heat welling up on his face.

"H-hey – (clear throat) – where's this coming from, huh?"

"Well, you were quick to jump to hugging, Mister Shiro, so I assumed…"

"Nah…I just…like hugs…"

Zoey giggled. "Heehee, really? You're funny, Mister Shiro."

"Okay."

"…you don't talk a lot, do you, Mister Shiro?"

"…not necessarily."

"I don't mind talking a lot. Talking is fun! But you're just like my bruther. He don't talk none, but he's got reason to. But that don't mean I'll tell you."

"Okay."

"…"

"…"

"It's cuz he's mute."

"Alright then."

"But he was born that way, don't think som'thin else about it. It's just how he is."

"…"

"…"

"…there's something about you too, isn't there."

"H-How'd you know?!"

'You made it kind of obvious…'

"Well, there is. But that don't mean I'll tell you."

"Okay."

"…"

"…"

"The people in white tell me that things called Telomeres are inside of me, messing with my blood, and they keep me from getting older quicker."

"How old are you, then?"

"I just celebrated my sixth birthday few weeks ago…I'm eighteen."

Toshiro was taken aback, but still curious. "Well, do you mind if I ask…"

"What, Mister Shiro?"

"Why do you still have…edgy…grammar?"

"Well, Mister Shiro…me and my brother were very sick. See, our momma didn't want us to be born, but she didn't know how to get rid of us. She tried drinkin' and smokin' and getting hurt and stuff, but nothin' worked, we were born. But we were really sick.

"Our momma…didn't want us. She gave birth to us and left. She…well, luckily, one of the nice people in white fixed us, and took care of us for a little while, then put us in a place with other children with no mommies. He used to visit us for a while, but he stopped coming around. I wonder what happened to him sometimes, but…I can only assume.

"See, Mister Shiro, where we come from, people don't like each other. People like to kill each other. They like to fight and hate and fight and hate. And, I don't…like it.

"But, that's not the point…anyway, the man is white said I also had this thing called, Dyspraxia, and it makes me not learn good. And my bruther has something that the man in white called Ay Dee Aech Dee, or sumthin. And he can't focus, so he don't know words. So he just don't e'en speak.

"You see, Mister Shiro, dis world here is a dark place, It is. It's filled with people that like to hate and fight and say bad things, and do bad things to other people. And, Mister Shiro, I think it's just plain dumb. Cuz…here, I have a question. Okay so, there's a king, and then dere's his horsey, see. And the king, and his horse, they was raised the same, taught the same, they have the same skills. And see here, Mister Shiro…when they go to battle, the king is fightin, while to horse is just some horse. Mister Shiro, my question is, why does the king get to fight, and not the horse, e'en tho they has the same abilities?"

"Well…is it because the horse can't hold the sword."

"No, no…it's _instinct_. That's what wrong with the world, Mister Shiro. When people are capable of the same things, they're not satisfied. And it is people's greediness that make them all fight. See, Mister Shiro, if people could do the same things, and were of the same equal standings, they coulds just be friendly and does stuff together. But Mister Toshiro, people like to try and beat each other, because of their so-called 'instinct'. Their 'instinct' to be better, or whatever, it makes them bad people. When they all tries ta reach the top, some make it, some go back to where they started, and some reach lower than where they began. And dat's wut makes 'em fight, Mister Shiro. The fact that they aren't the same anymore, that one is better than the other. But really, Mister Shiro…it's their own fault! They did dis demselfes! Dey rose up, or fall downs, or stayeded the same, and they blame others! But it's their own fault! Deir own fault that they couldn't be the same! They blame others, or their past, or their future, but they never just stop bein' fools'n accept the fact that their dumb and wrong! That they put deir false judgment 'gainst demselfes! Mister Shiro, it's real dumb! It's real dumb!

"I be talkin' bout the world, cuz…my – our - mommy, she is parta dat world. She dun wanna be seen as another bad girl with de babies, she wan' be free, an hav fun, see. But, that's where people like momma's wrong. Cuz see, Mister, Shiro. When you do sumthin, you gots ta clean up after yourself! Wedder it's a mistake or not, cuz you did it! You did it! It's no one else's respons'bilty but yurs! Yu needs ta stop actin like an innocent baby and stick up fer urself or else yu'll nevr learn!

"…Mister Shiro, I wish I could learn. I wishes I could go ta school, and learn stuffs, and…Mister Shiro, alls I ever wan'ned ta be was a docter. Like the man in white. And Dan, he lieks music! But, he cain't sing, er even listen to music sometimes!...Wut em tryin' ta say, Mishter Shiro, is that sometimes, the world will give you hell. But, Mister Shiro, you've just gotta remember that…there's _always_ hope. And the only way you can reach that hope is by having something to fight for. And yeah, trying to fight for something might end up in someone getting hurt. But really, it's up to yourself how your own story goes. No one else. Just you."

"Little girl, you're just full of words, aren't you?"

"I'm…sorry, Mister Shiro.

"I'm sorry I made you cry."


	9. Chapter 9

Heritage Chapter 9

"What?! Depression?!" Arlo was taken aback. Toshiro bonked him on the head to send out the message that maybe he was a _bit _too loud.

"It's a past thing. No need to go into detail now," Drake said. "We just need to…wake her up and calm her down. Okay? Back to the apartments."

"So…who are the two kids?" Drake asked after Toshiro lie Momiji on the bed.

"Hey there, Mister, I've got a name! It's Zoey, hear?! And I'm not just some little girl! I'm the best big sister anyone could possibly have ever!"

"I've got a name, too. And it's definitely not 'Mister'.

"My name is Drake Anheria. It's a pleasure to meet you, zoey, Dan," Anheria activated his usable senses to figure out the children's location, crouch in front of them, and shake their hands.

"Um…okay, Mister Dragon!"

"Hahahaha, good enough." Drake stood back up, walking over to Momiji.

"Yo, how're we gonne wake her up, anyway?" Arlo asked.

"That's a good question," Drake added. "She's a pretty deep sleeper." He soflty shook her shoulders. "Momiji? Wake up now…"

"That'll never work! Ya gotta be more assertive!" Arlo walked to the other side of the bed, gripping Momiji's shoulders. He began to shake her violently.

"MOMIJI-SAN WAKE UP WAKE UP WAKE U-"

"SHUT UP MORON I'M RIGHT HERE"

'This counts as the third time Arlo's broken through a wall…' Toshiro thought as she sighed.

Momiji sighed heavily. "Is Kimi still gone? And a better question…why was I asleep?"

"What, you don't remember? You-" Drake placed his hand in front of Arlo's mouth, a look of pure terror on his face. "Not again," Arlo heard him whisper.

"Momiji, nee-san…how many people are in our group?"

"Um, nii-san, that's a really weird question. What's up?"

"Nothing, Momiji. I'm just…testing your vigor."

"Nii-san, you're becoming more and more dull as time goes on, I swear. We're traveling with Kimi and her two friends, right?"

Toshiro and Arlo were taken aback. "Hey, Toshiro," Arlo whispered.

"What?" Toshiro responded in a hushed tone.

"Does she not…?"

"It…seems so. Her mind must have tried to block out the fight, but cancelled out everything else as well.

"She doesn't…remember Alex ever existing."

Drake approached his sister. "Momiji…who did you grow up with?"

"Y-you, of course…nii-san, what's wrong? You're freaking me out…"

"Mister Shiro, what's happening?" Zoey whispered.

"It's nothing."

"…You're not a very good liar, Mister Shiro."

"Momiji, I'm gonna…go for a walk. Okay?"

"Nii-san, I'll come with-"

"I'd like to go alone. Okay?"

"O-okay…" Momiji sat back down on the bed and watched her brother with solemn eyes as he walked out the door.

The room was silent for a while. After some time, Arlo started up a conversation with Momiji about favorite types of sodas, and other food-related topics. Zoey would talk to Toshiro sometimes, but he never finished the conversation. He just nodded with his elbows on his knees, looking straight ahead; analyzing the situation over and over in his mind.

There was a loud repetitive knocking on the door, sounding like the source was in quite a hurry.

Toshiro slowly opened the door. "Anheria, no need to be so-"

Toshiro was trampled and pinned to the ground. Everyone looked over.

"Toshiro, what is-" Arlo began. He immediately closed his mouth and rushed over. Momiji's eyes watered as she walked over as well.

Toshiro wrapped his arms around the bawling girl. "T-Toshiro….I-I was s-so scared…(sniff sniff)(crying)"

"I-It's okay, Kimi…" He helped her up, wiping away her tears.

"Kimi, where did you go? Why did you run away?!" Arlo asked.

"I was just…following Alex."

"What?!" Toshiro and Arlo yelled.

"But, it wasn't Alex! But, it also _was_ Alex…you see, I woke up in the middle of the night, and there he was! And he told me to follow him, so I did, because I felt bad for slapping him, and yelling at him…he led me to outside the city, far away…I tried to ask him where we were going, but he didn't respond. And then, his head turned around and faced me! But, that wasn't Alex…his hair was torn and mangled, skin peeling, eyes glowing red, jaw wide open…I ran away, and got lost…I'm…so glad I made it back, guys…" Kimi began crying again.

Momiji placed a hand on Kimi's shoulder. "Hey, are you feeling okay? Or did you just make up a new imaginary friend? Hahahahaha!" Momiji giggled to herself. Kimi looked to Arlo and Toshiro for help, but they just lowered their heads and kept their mouths shut.

Kimi approached Momiji. "Momiji, who's your best friend? I…wanna know."

"Why, you of course! What, getting jealous on me?"

Kimi embraced her friend tightly. Momiji hugged back after a few astonished seconds.

"It's…not that big of a deal, really. Are…you okay? Heheh…" Momiji giggled uneasily at her friend.

"Yeah, I'm…I'm okay," Kimi lied. She weakly smiled at her friend as silence returned to the uneasy room.

The silence was broken by the sound of explosions.

"What the hell was that?!" Toshiro exclaimed.

"Guys, it's the soldiers!" Arlo peeked out of the curtains.

Toshiro ran over to the children. "Try and find Anheria. And if they ask, you never saw us. Got it?"

"U-Um, Mister Shiro? I-"

"Go! Now!"

Tears filled Zoey's eyes as she grabbed Dan's hand and ran out of the room.

"Guys, let's get out of here!" Momiji yelled. "We don't have a lot of time…"

"They've already covered the doors! We won't be able to just run away this time," Arlo warned.

"I have an idea!" Kimi yelled. "We'll need to split up into groups, though.

"Alright, Arlo can turn himself invisible, so just maneuver your way down the side of the building, okay?"

"Right."

"Momiji and I are small enough to crawl through the vents, but not Toshiro…"

"I'll climb the fireplace to the roof and jump rooftops until I reach north of town."

"So, that's where we'll meet! The north road, at the edge of town! Okay?"

"Yeah," everyone agreed.

"Alright! Let's go! Come on, Momiji!" As Arlo opened the window and became invisible and Toshiro crawled into the fireplace, Kimi lifted the vent to the ducts and moved.

"Go, Momiji!" Momiji crawled in, and Kimi followed, closing the vent behind them. Toshiro quickly exited the fireplace to replace the vent and weld it back on.

"Thanks, Toshiro-kun," Kimi said as Toshiro disappeared into and up the fireplace again.

Crawling in a tiny vent proved difficult for Kimi. "It's really hot in here," she whispered.

"Remember to keep your voice down," Momiji reminded Kimi.

"Right."

The two continued to crawl through the vents. They eventually came to a crossroad.

"Which way?" Momiji asked.

"Um, should we split up?"

"Y-You sure? I don't think that's a very good idea…"

"Here, uh…" Kimi handed Fuki – inside of her egg – to Momiji. "Hand me one of yours, too. We can both find ground, then track each other by using our Charas. Okay?"

"Wh-whatever you say, I guess…I can't think of a better idea, so…" Momiji handed Manami and her egg over to Kimi.

"You go right, Momiji. I'll go down the left vent…the first cleared grate you find, go through it and navigate your way down and out of the building."

"Y-yeah, okay…" Momiji slowly crawled down the right vent as Kimi leaned to the left and went the other direction.

Crawling down a small, dark shaft didn't prove healthy for Kimi's sanity. She shuffled faster in order to find a grate faster.

As she turned a corner, small, thin rays of light veered out from the bottom of the vent a ways ahead. She crawled over and tried to pry open the grate.

When it wouldn't automatically open, she tried to put weight on it to loosen it up by crawling over it – the metal around the grate broke, causing her to fall through.

She quickly stood and shuffled underneath the bed. She heard three people enter the room.

"Did you hear that?!" One asked the others.

"Yeah, musta been one of those delinquents that captured out princess…scan the room. They can't be far."

One went into the bathroom, one began scanning the hallway, and the last one entered the bedroom.

'What do I do, Tenpi?'

'I think…I have an idea. Leave it to me.'

From under the bed, Kimi could see Tenpi go out into the hallway, and create a mirage with the clouds that looked like Kimi.

"Hey! Princess!" This caught the other guards attention out into the hallway. Kimi crawled out from under the bed, went into the living room, and opened the window. 'The third floor,' she thought.

"Princess!" Kimi heard from behind. She swiftly turned around to see the three guards in the living room with her.

"Princess Kimikoami, we've found you! Quick, come back to the castle with us!"

"I…" Kimi began. She felt Tenpi land on her shoulder. "I'm afraid I can't do that."

A large cloud formed in the room, blocking the vision of the guards. Kimi vaulted the Window, trying to find her footing. There were a few foot-holes, but the velocity of her fall broke the foot-holds, causing her to land on the ground from three stories up.

"Ah, my leg!" Kimi looked down at her leg – there was a giant gash. A lay-away shard of glass lodged itself inside of her leg.

Kimi ran into a nearby alleyway before sitting down. "Manami…where is Momiji?"

"She's already ahead of us…I can sense that Fuki probably felt us exit the building, so they went ahead and began heading towards the meeting spot.

"Okay, good…" Kimi looked down at her leg and grimaced. She tried to touch the glass, but her squeamish-ness wouldn't let her.

"Manami, Tenpi…I need you to pull."

"What?! But, Kimi-"

"DO IT NOW!"

Tenpi regained her human form and crouched in front of Kimi. "Okay…ready?"

"Y-Yeah."

"Okay…One, Two, Three!"

Kimi bit her lip and dug her nails into the asphalt to prevent her screams from leaving her mouth. Tenpi pulled the bloody shard of glass out of her leg, removing the problem but opening the wound further. Blood poured out of Kimi's leg.

"Kimi, you need first-aid treatment now!"

"No! Let's…let's go," Tenpi helped Kimi stand, noticing the blood on her hands, and the blood running out of her mouth. 'She must have bit down hard…'

"Kimi, let me help you stand! I need to…"

"No, I can walk," Kimi brushed off Tenpi. "Just go back into your egg for now, okay?"

"No, Kimi! I need to help you!"

"Go back into your egg before I suspend you! Go now!"

"F-Fine…" Tenpi uneasily returned to her smaller form, peeking her eyes out of the egg.

Kimi began running through alleyways northward, ignoring the pain in her leg to the best of her ability.

"Tenpi," she gasped. "Where's…Toshiro, and Arlo."

"Arlo is walking down a sidewalk – must be invisible still."

"What about…Toshiro?"

"He's above us…a ways away, as well. We're the farthest one's away from the meeting place, it seems."

"Is it possible to…find the children as well? Or maybe Anheria-Sensei?"

"I can barely sense the children…they must have unhatched magical powers," Tenpi added. "They're a good ways away from here. And they're not running…they must be safe from danger."

"G-good…" Kimi stumbled, catching herself before she fell.

"Kimi!" Tenpi said.

"I'm fine," Kimi responded.

Kimi could hear the footsteps coming from a few alleyways behind her. 'Got to run…faster…' Kimi thought. She picked up the speed, increasing the intensified pain in her leg.

"We're really close! Just a bit more, Kimi!" Tenpi encouraged. Kimi kept running with her life.

Turning a corner, Kimi fell to the floor, face flushed pale.

"Kim! Come on, get up! KIMI!" Tenpi cried.

"Tenpi, look!" Manami cried. Tenpi turned around swiftly.

"Are you…here to help us?"

"Yes," he responded. The sun began to set as he picked up Kimi and sprinted towards the others with her in his arms.

Kimi blinked her eyes open. The pain was immense. She grimaced.

"Sorry, Kimi. Just a little bit longer."

"Nh…An…heria-Sensei? Wh-why are you here?! Get away, now!"

"That's not a possibility. Sorry."

"But, what about continuing your dojo, living your dream?!" Anheria was silent. Kimi returned the silence with tears.

"Nii-san!" Momiji cried. Everyone rushed over him and Kimi.

"Kimi! What happened?!" Arlo asked.

"No time," Drake said. He handed Kimi over to Toshiro.

"You guys need to get out of here, right now! They're coming!"

"N-Nii-san…you're not…"

Arlo grabbed Momiji's arm, dragging her along.

"Let go of me, bastard! Let go now!"

"Sorry, Momiji-san."

"NII-SAN! STOP IT, NII-SAN!"

The sun was now set.

Fuki popped out of her egg. "I can shroud us in darkness and make us invisible."

"A-alright," Kimi agreed.

As guards arrived, Drake held them back with his wooden Kendo sword. The darkness began to shroud the group of teenagers.

"NII-SAN, COME ON! LET'S GO, NOW!" Momiji cried. "DON'T…DON'T LEAVE ME! PLEASE! NII-SAN!"

Drake took a small break and slowly turned around to the others, faring then well with a smile.

"I love you, Momiji. I always will-"

A bullet entered Drake's head. Shortly afterwards, more impaled his body.

"NIIIIIIII-SAAAAAAAAN!" The group was completely shrouded in darkness.

And like that, six months passed.


End file.
